strange and random happenstance

The Bridal Strain: Emily and Colin's Wedding by Tasha Alexander
Published by: Tasha Alexander
Publication Date: 2009
Format: Kindle
Rating: ★★★★★
To Buy

After much temptation, much heartache, and much delay, Colin has decided that he can no longer wait to be married to Emily, his future mother-in-law and Queen Victoria be damned. So drenched to the bone high above the caldera on Santorini he proposes that he and Emily be married that very night and Emily agrees. Though Emily is swept away by the romantic gesture, not thinking of the practicalities of showing up at the church soaking wet and demanding to be wed, she is thankfully marrying a very organized man capable of pulling off the most elaborate of missions for the crown with the simplest of ease. So when they return to her villa she shouldn't be surprised that preparations are underway for a full wedding celebration, and yet she is. She's surprised and touched. The entire village has come together to see her and Colin wed. But that won't be the only surprise of the evening, as Emily's dearest friend Cecile is also on hand, there to celebrate the nuptials, but also there to provide emotional support while mourning such a handsome man leaving the marriage market. Though Cecile wouldn't let Emily marry unless the man was worry of her, luckily for Colin he is. And so, their married life begins.

So much of the first two books in Tasha's Lady Emily series is the will-they-won't-they of Emily and Colin. This isn't just played for romantic tension, though one can't deny that it is titillating, but it's practical. Emily, as a widow, has so much freedom that she has to be certain of Colin in order to be willing to shackle herself into another marriage where to the majority of Victorian society she would be nothing but a possession, and viewed, in the extreme, as a slave. But thankfully Colin loves her not as the ideal her first husband Philip viewed her as, but as this intelligent woman willing to fight at his side, not sit home and be content as the typical wife would in raising her brood. He loves her for what she has become, what she has evolved into, and that's why their relationship is so epic and why it would have been a shame not to see their wedding day. To be there as they became one, but still stayed themselves. Colin's wedding gift to Emily, of a gorgeous Greek vase, shows that he loves her for who she is and he will never force her into a mold labelled "Standard Victorian Wife." Though Tasha's extras are interesting in that it sheds light on the fact that what we view as the "Victorian Standard" isn't truth. Not everything is as it seems, Victorians were far more liberal, and there were quite a few pregnant women walking down the aisle...

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Alexander Autumn, Colin Hargreaves, Emily and Colin's Wedding, Freedom, Greek, Kindle, Lady Emily, Revisionist History, Santorini, Short Story, Tasha Alexander, The Bridal Strain, Victorian, Weddings

A Fatal Waltz by Tasha Alexander
Published by: William Morrow Paperbacks
Publication Date: May 20th, 2008
Format: Paperback, 304 Pages
Rating: ★★★★★
To Buy

Not every country house party ends in murder, but this one will. Oh, if only Emily had had the sense to stay home. But no, she agreed to come to the home of a man she detests in order to support her dear friend Ivy. Ivy's husband Robert needs the political support of their odious host, Lord Fortescue, if he's going to make it in government. The only bright spot in the whole endeavor is that Emily gets to spend the weekend with Colin Hargreaves, her fiancé. But that bright spot is soon eclipsed by the Austrian Countess Kristiana von Lange. Kristiana makes it very clear that she and Colin have a past, possibly a present, and maybe a future, and there's nothing that Emily can do about it. This leaves Emily impotent with rage as Kristiana insinuates herself into the political talks among the men after dinner while Emily, trying to keep Ivy's best interests in mind, demurs and retires with the women, much to Lord Fortescue's approbation. In fact leaving the dinner table is the only thing Emily has done right in the eyes of their host. Emily's hackles are raised and another guest, Mr. Harrison, conveniently has a plan to get back at Lord Fortescue.

If Emily hadn't been so turned around by Kristiana, maybe she would have realized that Mr. Harrison didn't have her best interests at heart and maybe Emily could have seen there was a murderer among them. Instead their host is shot dead and dear Ivy's husband Robert is arrested for the murder. Once back in London Emily tries to piece together the information she has at hand with rumors and suppositions. Robert even gives her a few clues and everything points to a nefarious plot in Vienna. Emily can't exonerate Robert from London, so she packs up her bags, grabs her trusty sidekicks, Jeremy, Cecile, and Cecile's odious dogs, and heads to the town of her romantic rival. Little does she know that she is being followed by Mr. Harrison and her beloved Colin. And though she loathes to do it, she approaches Kristiana for help, which is denied. Kristiana will only help if Emily will forfeit all claims to Colin, something Emily knows, deep in her heart, she could never do. As the danger mounts and Emily makes alliances with the oddest assortment of artists and villains, she worries that she will be unable to save Robert, herself, or Colin. Could this be the end of all of them?

There's a realness to this installment that deepens your connection to Emily and her world. Up until this point it's not that her world was shallow, but that the stories dealt with situations that weren't too far removed from the world Emily inhabited. She was investigating her own little sphere of the world and crimes that were closely adjacent to it, maids that might be murderers. We've seen the strictures and the societal surface one must maintain, but at the same time it felt more in the realm of romanticized historical fiction with the denouement tied up nicely with a bow. Yet Victorian times weren't all fluff, there were real concerns, real problems, and here we are digging deeper into those issues and forging a stronger connection to Emily as Emily herself forms a stronger connection to the world around her. The first time this struck me was when Lord Fortescue has the hundreds and hundreds of birds from their shoot laid out for display during lunch. This excess, this cruelty to animals, this is the real world the landed gentry inhabited and exploited. House parties weren't wonderful social gatherings, they were sanctioned murder, even if your host didn't bite the big own.

Then there's the death fog Emily remembers engulfing London when she was a child. The poverty, the anarchists, every little thing makes Emily's world more real. Her world is grounded in truth, in a world we can see every night when we turn on the news. She is no longer sheltered, she is becoming an educated woman who we can relate to more than even before when she was just a pampered princess destined to marry royalty, if her mother had had a say in it. As Tasha writes in her afterward, this introduction of the horrors of the world is being done purposefully to make Emily a socially conscious being. And in becoming socially conscious Emily herself is becoming more real to us. Sure, we all occasionally dream of the life Emily had, being blissfully ignorant and free to flounce around the house being indulgent, but a fantasy can not last in the long run. Lady Emily's adventures would have no long term sustainability. There's only so many wrongfully accused kitchen maids a series can contain, and by expanding Emily as a person you expand her horizons. Therefore a series that could have petered out a few volumes in is releasing it's thirteenth volume this fall.

All this realness means that there is real danger and real consequences. Yes, we've had death and danger before, but Emily treated it breezily, it was there but it would be overcome and there would be no consequences except for the guilty. Here the danger is palpable. The threat of Mr. Harrison and his bullet calling cards, while yes, a little like something a Bond villain would do, upsets Emily's world of luxurious hotels and Sacher Tortes. Having to make alliances with anarchists who are dangerous themselves and are scared of Mr. Harrison gives you an idea as to this man's villainy. And while I knew there were more books in the series, I couldn't help but be drawn in and think, as Colin and Emily were, that they might not survive. This question being raised makes Emily and us realize the true dangers of Colin's job. He has faced this kind of situation again and again. In fact Kristiana hints that that is why she never left her husband for Colin, because the distraction of a wife could endanger him. Which makes Emily wonder, is Colin in her life worth the constant risk of losing him? Can she live like this? Real danger means you might not want to have to face the answers to real questions.

But for the longest time Emily views Kristiana as a far bigger danger to her and Colin's happiness than the looming specter of death. While I could groan at the introduction of a love triangle, this one never falls into the typical tropes. There was something fun about Emily having competition for Colin. You knew, deep in your heart, that Colin could never stray. At least not now that he's met Emily. But that doesn't discount the importance of this woman in his past or her powers over him in the present. Every chance she got Kristiana was pulling on Emily's strings and getting just the rise out of her she wanted. Historical Fiction with a romantic bent seems to always marry off their couples in too rapid a fashion and then have a happily ever after that only occasionally sees bumps of the romantic kind. That's why I love that Tasha hasn't married off Colin and Emily just yet. There's more believability that Kristiana is a threat. There's a playfulness in this what-if scenario. Competition can bring out the best in people, but not with Emily in this instance. It brings out all her bad qualities, and again, it makes her more real, more relatable. That Lady Emily Ashton could get her hackles up over her true love? Just shows it can happen to any of us.

Though for all it's realness, the most important aspect of A Fatal Waltz to me is it's most memorable character, the city of Vienna itself! I've never been and oddly enough have never really given much thought to this city that was literally the center of an artistic and cultural revolution, but now I want to pack my bags and go. Right. Now. Of course I'd prefer to go in winter with the snow falling in beautiful drifts as Emily enjoyed it, but as long as I can go to all the cafes and walk all the streets I think I could find true enjoyment. But alas, I don't know if such famous personages would be peopling the cafes. So could I literally get a time machine and go when Emily went? To see Klimt paint and dance to a Strauss waltz actually conducted by Strauss! To visit Sisi, the Empress Elisabeth of Austria, though I have a feeling I'd need to take Cecile with me to get that invite. Even if I didn't know how well traveled Tasha is, you can tell in reading the book that Tasha has been there, she's walked in Emily's steps before she even put pen to paper. This just makes the city so real that as I said earlier, it's a character onto itself! It's not just buildings, but memorable people and a feeling, something that makes you want to go back there even if you've never been because somehow Tasha has made this city an old friend.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Fatal Waltz, Alexander Autumn, British Country House, Colin Hargreaves, Competition, Historical Fiction, Klimpt, Lady Emily, Love Triangle, Murder, Realness, Sacher Tortes, Sisi, Strauss, Tasha Alexander, Vienna

The Clockmaker's Daughter by Kate Morton
Published by: Atria Books
Publication Date: October 9th, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 512 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A rich, spellbinding new novel from the author of The Lake House - the story of a love affair and a mysterious murder that cast their shadows across generations, set in England from the 1860s until the present day.

My real name, no one remembers.
The truth about that summer, no one else knows.

In the summer of 1862, a group of young artists led by the passionate and talented Edward Radcliffe descends upon Birchwood Manor on the banks of the Upper Thames. Their plan: to spend a secluded summer month in a haze of inspiration and creativity. But by the time their stay is over, one woman has been shot dead while another has disappeared; a priceless heirloom is missing; and Edward Radcliffe's life is in ruins.

Over one hundred and fifty years later, Elodie Winslow, a young archivist in London, uncovers a leather satchel containing two seemingly unrelated items: a sepia photograph of an arresting-looking woman in Victorian clothing, and an artist's sketchbook containing the drawing of a twin-gabled house on the bend of a river.

Why does Birchwood Manor feel so familiar to Elodie? And who is the beautiful woman in the photograph? Will she ever give up her secrets?

Told by multiple voices across time, The Clockmaker's Daughter is a story of murder, mystery, and thievery, of art, love and loss. And flowing through its pages like a river, is the voice of a woman who stands outside time, whose name has been forgotten by history, but who has watched it all unfold: Birdie Bell, the clockmaker's daughter."

Kate Morton is an author who has really matured as a writer, each book better than the last and I can't wait for this one!

The Witch Elm by Tana French
Published by: Viking
Publication Date: October 9th, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 528 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
" From the writer who "inspires cultic devotion in readers" (The New Yorker) and has been called "incandescent" by Stephen King, "absolutely mesmerizing" by Gillian Flynn, and "unputdownable" (People), comes a gripping new novel that turns a crime story inside out.

Toby is a happy-go-lucky charmer who's dodged a scrape at work and is celebrating with friends when the night takes a turn that will change his life - he surprises two burglars who beat him and leave him for dead. Struggling to recover from his injuries, beginning to understand that he might never be the same man again, he takes refuge at his family's ancestral home to care for his dying uncle Hugo. Then a skull is found in the trunk of an elm tree in the garden - and as detectives close in, Toby is forced to face the possibility that his past may not be what he has always believed.

A spellbinding standalone from one of the best suspense writers working today, The Witch Elm asks what we become, and what we're capable of, when we no longer know who we are."

Family secrets and murder? Yes please!

The World of Lore: Dreadful Places by Aaron Mahnke
Published by: Del Rey
Publication Date: October 9th, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Captivating stories of the places where human evil has left a nefarious mark—featuring both rare and best-loved stories from the hit podcast Lore, now a streaming television series.

Sometimes you walk into a room, a building, or even a town, and you feel it. Something seems off—an atmosphere that leaves you oddly unsettled, with a sense of lingering darkness. Join Aaron Mahnke, the host of the popular podcast Lore, as he explores some of these dreadful places and the history that haunts them.

Mahnke takes us to Colorado and the palatial Stanley Hotel, where wealthy guests enjoyed views of the Rocky Mountains at the turn of the twentieth century—and where, decades later, a restless author would awaken from a nightmare, inspired to write one of the most revered horror novels of all time. Mahnke also crosses land and sea to visit frightful sites—from New Orleans to Richmond, Virginia, to the brooding, ancient castles of England—each with its own echoes of dark deeds, horrible tragedies, and shocking evil still resounding.

Filled with evocative illustrations, this eerie tour of lurid landmarks and doomed destinations is just the ticket to take armchair travelers with a taste for the macabre to places they never thought they’d visit in their wildest, scariest dreams.

This volume includes some of the best stories from the Lore podcast, such as “Echoes,” “Withering Heights,” and “Behind Closed Doors” as well as rare material."

I love it when podcasts jump to books, because it's rare I'll listen to a podcast, but I will sure read a book!

Ghosts of Christmas Past by Neil Gaiman et al
Published by: John Murray
Publication Date: October 9th, 2018
Format: Paperback, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A present contains a monstrous secret.
An uninvited guest haunts a Christmas party.
A shadow slips across the floor by firelight.
A festive entertainment ends in darkness and screams.

Who knows what haunts the night at the dark point of the year? This collection of seasonal chillers looks beneath Christmas cheer to a world of ghosts and horrors, mixing terrifying modern fiction with classic stories by masters of the macabre. From Neil Gaiman and M. R. James to Muriel Spark and E. Nesbit, there are stories here to make the hardiest soul quail - so find a comfy chair, lock the door, ignore the cold breath on your neck and get ready to welcome in the real spirits of Christmas."

Did you know that Halloween didn't used to be the only time for ghost stories? This book plans to bring back the tradition of Christmas Chills!

Carols and Chaos by Cindy Anstey
Published by: Swoon Reads
Publication Date: October 9th, 2018
Format: Paperback, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the author of Suitors and Sabotage comes a swoonworthy Christmas adventure, perfect for fans of Jane Austen and Downton Abbey. 

1817. The happy chaos of the Yuletide season has descended upon the country estate of Shackleford Park in full force, but lady's maid Kate Darby barely has the time to notice. Between her household duties, caring for her ailing mother, and saving up money to someday own a dress shop, her hands are quite full. Matt Harlow is also rather busy. He's performing double-duty, acting as valet for both of the Steeple brothers, two of the estate's holiday guests.

Falling in love would be a disaster for either of them. But staving off their feelings for each other becomes the least of their problems when a devious counterfeiting scheme reaches the gates of Shackleford Park, and Kate and Matt are unwittingly swept up in the intrigue.

Full of sweetness, charm, and holiday mischief, Carols and Chaos - a standalone companion novel to Suitors and Sabotage - is perfect for readers who like their historical fiction with a side of romance and danger."

And now that we've radically shifted holidays to Christmas, how about this book that promises a fix for fans of Jane Austen and Downton Abbey? Because I am I fan of both!

The Hour of Death by Jane Willan
Published by: Crooked Lane Books
Publication Date: October 9th, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 314 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Jane Willan’s The Hour of Death will be a Christmas delight for fans of G. M. Malliet, set on an island in Wales.

Sister Agatha and Father Selwyn make sleuthing a work of art. But will they paint themselves into a corner when they investigate the Village Art Society president’s death?

As Yuletide settles upon Gwenafwy Abbey, the rural Welsh convent’s peace is shattered when Tiffany Reese, president of the Village Art Society, is found dead on the floor of the parish hall. Sister Agatha, whose interests lie more with reading and writing mystery stories than with making the abbey’s world-renowned organic gouda, is not shy about inserting herself into the case. With the not-entirely-eager assistance of Father Selwyn, she begins her investigation.

Sister Agatha has no shortage of suspects to check off her naughty-or-nice list, until finally, Tiffany’s half-brother, Kendrick Geddings, emerges as the prime suspect. There never was any love lost between Tiffany and Kendrick, and of late they had been locked in a vicious battle for control of the family estate. But if Sister Agatha thinks she has the case wrapped up, she’ll have to think again.

As the days of Advent tick by, Sister Agatha is determined to crack the case by Christmas in The Hour of Death, Jane Willan’s perfectly puzzling second Sister Agatha and Father Selwyn Mystery."

A Welsh Christmas cozy for a cold winter night!

Queen of Kenosha by Howard Shapiro and Erica Chan
Published by: Animal Media Group LLC
Publication Date: October 9th, 2018
Format: Paperback, 160 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A coming of age tale, this is the first installment of the Thin Thinline Trilogy, the fiercely independent Nina Overstreet has an axe to grind. A talented singer-songwriter slogging her way through the burgeoning Greenwich Village folk music scene of 1963, the Queen of Kenosha, Wisconsin, realizes that standing on the cusp of stardom gets her little respect and barely a cup of coffee in New York City. It finally comes, but in a way she could have never imagined. A chance encounter with the mysterious Nick Ladd at a late-night gig spins her life in a different direction―one that becomes a daily balance between life and death, right and wrong. Nick recruits Nina to join him and a team of ex-FBI operatives in a clandestine agency to stop the establishment of the Fourth Reich by undercover Nazis in post-War America. It’s a cause Nina believes in … until she’s forced to compromise the very principles of fairness and patriotism she holds dear. As she and Nick grow closer as partners, she forces him to question his own intentions. But as the body count mounts in pursuit of the Nazi ringleader, the evasive Alex, the stakes grow even higher for Nick and Nina."

I think more small towns in Wisconsin need to be represented in books! Congrats Kenosha!

My Squirrel Days by Ellie Kemper
Published by: Scribner
Publication Date: October 9th, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 256 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Comedian and star of The Office and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Ellie Kemper delivers a hilarious and uplifting collection of essays about one pale woman’s journey from Midwestern naïf to Hollywood semi-celebrity to outrageously reasonable New Yorker.

There comes a time in every sitcom actress’s life when she is faced with the prospect of writing a book. When Ellie Kemper’s number was up, she was ready. Contagiously cheerful, predictably wholesome, and mostly inspiring except for one essay about her husband’s feet, My Squirrel Days is a funny, free-wheeling tour of Ellie’s life - from growing up in suburban St. Louis with a vivid imagination and a crush on David Letterman to moving to Los Angeles and accidentally falling on Doris Kearns Goodwin.

But those are not the only famous names dropped in this synopsis. Ellie will also share stories of inadvertently insulting Ricky Gervais at the Emmy Awards, telling Tina Fey that she has “great hair - really strong and thick,” and offering a maxi pad to Steve Carell. She will take you back to her childhood as a nature lover determined to commune with squirrels, to her college career as a benchwarming field hockey player with no assigned position, and to her young professional days writing radio commercials for McDonald’s but never getting paid. Ellie will guide you along her journey through adulthood, from unorganized bride to impatient wife to anxious mother who - as recently observed by a sassy hairstylist - “dresses like a mom.” Well, sassy hairstylist, Ellie Kemper is a mom. And she has been dressing like it since she was four.

Ellie has written for GQ, Esquire, The New York Times, McSweeney’s, and The Onion. Her voice is the perfect antidote to the chaos of modern life. In short, she will tell you nothing you need to know about making it in show business, and everything you need to know about discreetly changing a diaper at a Cibo Express."

I mean firstly, it's a book with Ellie Kemper and a squirrel on the cover, and buy that no matter the contents. But secondly, PLEASE tell me she's going on a book tour!

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Christmas, Cindy Anstey, Ellie Kemper, Ghost of Christmas Past, Jane Willan, Kate Morton, Lore, My Squirrel Days, Neil Gaiman, Queen of Kenosha, Tana French, The Clockmaker's Daughter, Wales, Wisconsin

A Poisoned Season: Lady Emily Book 2 by Tasha Alexander
Published by: Harper
Publication Date: 2007
Format: Paperback, 352 Pages
Rating: ★★★★★
To Buy

Lady Emily has come to love her life, especially her life in Greece. Still, she must be a "proper" lady, so she has returned to England to take part in The Season. The endless parties and social gatherings. All the things a woman can and can not do. So what if she wants to read in public and drink port in private? She should be allowed to do as she wants! Being a widow has to have some advantages in eccentricity. Thankfully Cecile du Lac arrives from Paris to relieve the ennui. But Cecile soon becomes prey to the cat burglar who is sneaking in and out of the homes of the wealthy reclaiming jewels that where once Marie Antoinette's! The whole of the ton has gone French crazy. Especially with the arrival of Charles Berry. Berry claims to be the heir to the French throne and is more than happy to have Emily grace his bedchamber, even if he intends to marry one of Emily's acquaintances because Emily isn't queen material. Could this cad be sneaking into bedchambers for an entirely different reason? Could this creature of lust who tends to lash out be a cunning thief?

Though theft is much different from murder... A David Francis has been murdered and his wife's maid has been arrested. Mrs. Francis is convinced her maid is innocent and looks to Emily for help. Emily is excited for the challenge, but her erstwhile suitor Colin Hargreaves is worried that she might be in over her head and perhaps they should just get engaged. Yet an engagement to Colin might curtail Emily's independence. All Emily knows is that an engagement, to Colin or her old friend Jeremy who has entered the marriage market would make her mother ecstatic, so it's the last thing she wants to do. Plus there are the mysterious notes in Greek and flowers she's been receiving on her pillow to take into consideration as well. Is this Colin's more seductive side? Or does she have an overzealous suitor who is verging into stalker territory. Could the cat burglar have fallen for her? With her own reputation looking perilous will Emily be cut from society before she solves the murder and thefts? And will she ever say yes to Colin?

In all seriousness I want to know who doesn't love a good thief plot? Coupling this with a lost heir air just added to my enjoyment. Ah, a daring jewel thief, a cat burglar by another name, I always have a soft spot for them. In fact I've kind of always wanted to be one. I have always thought it would be fun to be an art or jewel thief (note, if I'm ever caught, you never read this!) I always remember this one scene in a movie, which I think stared Jane Seymour, but I remember it was a very French looking house with skylights and a yellow carpeted staircase and a party downstairs and a man in black sneaking around, and I thought, what a glamorous life... yeah, I might have some issues or I might just not be living up to my full potential. Extra points if you know the movie I'm talking about, also, Jane Seymour might not have been in it and it might have been Robert Wagner, but it's definitely not the first Pink Panther movie. But the idea of a gentleman thief is so alluring. Let's call it the Raffles effect. This also led to overtones of Wilkie Collins's The Moonstone, what with the jewels of great value. Which, I will say, is deliciously Victorian.

Though we must not forget the lost heir plot! While I had a little disconnect with Bourbon fever happening in the Victorian era when aristos weren't being whisked across the channel for their safety, I can easily forgive that for the book containing some lost dauphin action. The missing heir to the French throne always fascinated me as a child, mainly because Wisconsin has it's own connection to the missing child. Eleazer Williams was a missionary who came to Wisconsin with a delegation of Native Americans and settled in Green Bay. In 1839 he started to claim he was the lost dauphin, which escalated in the 1850s until he was viewed as the pretender to the throne. My Dad grew up in the Fox River Valley and would tell us stories about the lost prince, but mainly he'd tell us stories about the treasure he had on him when he escaped. Treasure that was about as real as Eleazer's claim. But my dad had me convinced that this little cove near our house was possibly where he had dropped the treasure. I had even picked a rock out in Lake Mendota that I thought could possibly have the treasure underneath. Re-reading Tasha's book brought this all back to me, and it makes me smile and also kind of wish fairy tales were true and that that little prince didn't die in prison.

While thefts and pretenders are all wonderful fodder and make for an adventurous read, it's Emily and her feelings that I really connect to. Her joy and her despair and her outrage, I'm just ready to fight for her and any little slight or danger that comes her way. But I don't think this connection would be so strong if Tasha hadn't plotted Emily's journey as she did. We as readers needed to fall in love with Emily away from the world as she was sequestered during her mourning. We see her evolve into the woman she was destined to become and therefore we see how she struggles when she is thrust back into society. She is no longer what is expected of women of this time period, even the Queen wants her settled. In fact Emily's dear friend Ivy shows us what is expected of Victorian women and brings home how Ivy isn't happy being the perfect wife. Society was at this time designed for men and it hurt the women they were supposed to love. Gaw, the horrid double standard of it all. Yet to me this all hinges on the book starting at that garden party and having Tasha throw tons of new characters at us. For a few minutes you feel at sea, the sheer number of characters creates claustrophobia and in that moment you feel the elation and dread that Emily must feel going back into society and you are there with her in the Victorian age!

For Emily though there is an oasis in Colin. The first time I read these first two books I wasn't completely sold on Colin as Emily's love interest. I think it was because somehow I loved Emily's dead husband Philip more... and Colin was too perfect. A paragon, the dream man of literature. There's a reason I keep picturing him as Colin Firth after all... I was worried that Emily alone was better than Emily coupled, because historical romances do tend to marry their leads off too quickly and Emily loses so much by marrying again and I didn't want that to happen to her. And I think this is why I really appreciated Colin this time around. He knows what Emily would lose by marrying him and wills her his library. Something all her own as it comes crashing down on her that her current home and books actually belong to her husband's heir and not herself. But it's deeper than that, Philip loved Emily as an ideal. She was a paragon of beauty, he didn't really know her. Whereas Colin knows Emily for who she really is, a women who will never fit society's definition of a good wife, who is smart, witty, and willing to march into danger. Their relationship thrives because they love each other for who they are, books and all.

And as for those books... Tasha gets it. She just GETS IT! She understands the importance of books in one's life for mental well-being. When Ivy is depressed and on the brink of despair she puts a book in her hand, the more sensational the better! This is what I don't get about people who say they don't read or don't like to read, reading is my jam. It's how I maintain balance in my life. Meditation I don't get, but I understand that for some people what meditation gives them is what I get from reading. If I'm really grouchy or angry and every little thing is getting on my last nerve it's most likely because I haven't picked up a book in a few days. It restores my sanity. When life gets too harsh it's bliss to escape between the pages of a book and just go somewhere else. Though there is a down side in that if I'm reading a book and it's bad, it tends to also reflect in my mood. Because I just can not not finish a book! No matter how bad, how horrid, how aggravating, I will finish whatever book I have started. There has literally been only one exception I can think of in recent years. But even if I don't like a book the experience of reading a book is always pleasurable. In fact I'm starting to wonder why I'm still writing and not reading... Emily would recommend it after all!

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Poisoned Season, Alexander Autumn, Books, Colin Firth, Jewel Thief, Lady Emily, Lost Dauphin, Marie Antoinette, Queen Victoria, Tasha Alexander, The Moonstone, Victorian, Wilkie Collins, Womens Rights

And Only to Deceive by Tasha Alexander
Published by: Harper
Publication Date: 2005
Format: Paperback, 321 Pages
Rating: ★★★★★
To Buy

Lady Emily is the widow of the Viscount Philip of Ashton, the husband everyone wanted. It was a very convenient marriage all around. Emily needed to get away from her domineering mother and Philip had the credentials to appease said mother and viewed Emily as the apex of beauty, his Kallista. So he asked for Emily's hand and was accepted and promptly went off to Africa and died, leaving her comfortable and independent. Who could ask for anything more? But now Emily is ready to shed her mourning after two long years sequestered away from society. What little society she has been allowed consists of her best friend Ivy, or friends of her husband, like Colin Hargreaves, or her mother. Who is trying to convince her that she should marry. AGAIN! Didn't the marriage to Philip count? Sure he died and they had no children, but the statues she attained should be enough to keep her mother at bay for at least one lifetime. Being a widow is liberating! Why would Emily give that up to be the property of another man she barely knows?

Emily's removal from society has made her realize she can do whatever she wants under the guise of trauma. She can sit in her husband's study and drink port and learn Greek and go to the museum and forge a life for herself that doesn't require a man! Yet she finds, to her astonishment, that her husband was really a fascinating man. A true scholar with a mind teaming with knowledge and a love of art. A man who truly loved her and whom she just thought of as a way out of an intolerable situation. He loved her, yet she didn't love him... then. Following in his steps, learning about his interests and passions, she slowly starts to fall for her dead husband. If only her husband where still alive, think of the conversations they could have because of the new learned woman she has become thanks to the position he gave her. But if, by some miracle, he did return, would he approve of the woman she's become? Would she be willing to accept his flaws, even if they are illegal? But most importantly, how would he view her bevy of suitors?

With Emily and Philip you have a truly interesting love story. Not the typical boy meets girl and then after some problems, they live happily ever after with Emily's mom being a good foil during their courtship. Here we have boy meets girl, they marry, girl loses boy and years later falls in love with who she thinks he might have been. We get to experience all the joys and sorrows of two people falling in love, but simultaneously know that it is doomed. Philip was in love with a woman he put on a pedestal and literally made his goddess, Kallista, and Emily fell in love with a past that never was. Yet Tasha strings us along, making us see the romantic what ifs without initially focusing on what the truth of their relationship would have been given societal constraints. Leading you on, building this epic and tragic love story that you are so completely committed to you totally ignore the fact that it would never work. I was hoping against hope that by some miracle Philip would be alive and that these two crazy kids would make their relationship work.

But the realist in me knew it wasn't to be, and the doubt even seeps into the cracks Emily has been ignoring. The fact that her husband might have been morally dubious is just a catalyst for her to actually look at the reality of her situation. Philip never knew Emily. He saw her as this beautiful creature, renaming her Kallista to be his romantic ideal. He loved the idea of her, much like he loved his art. She's a statue of loveliness to him. But could he love this statue if it came to life? After his death she changed, she became self-reliant, knowledgeable, all the things Victorian women weren't supposed to be. I don't think Philip would be able to rectify his image of her with the learned woman she has become, much less Emily being able to rectify the scholar of her imagination with the big game hunter he was. If he had never gone and died in Africa he'd expect Emily to be a typical Victorian wife. Seen, not heard. Beautiful and his most prized possession. Because two people can easily be desperately in love with each other when they have no idea who the other person is.

While much of the book deals with the heartbreak of falling for someone after they're gone, there is other, more familiar DNA that Tasha mines for Emily's other suitors. I can not but agree with the spot on quote on the back of my paperback edition that says "[h]ad Jane Austen written The Da Vinci Code, she may well have come up with this elegant novel." It's not just the secrets of antiquities that bring to mind Dan Brown's bestseller, or the effortless writing reminiscent of Austen that makes it feel like this book sprang fully formed from Tasha's head like Athena did from Zeus's, but Philip's two friends who are vying for Emily's heart. Or at least her hand. On the one hand we have Colin Hargreaves, with the wavy hair and stoic demeanor of a 1996 Colin Firth, he's a bit of a mystery, but Philip trusted him and therefore Emily does, to an extent. On the other hand we have Andrew Palmer, a delightful conversationalist, a bit of a gossip, and a total flirt, but such a hansom flirt. Yes folks, it's the Pride and Prejudice of it all with Colin being our Darcy and Andrew being our Wickham.

And much like Austen's classic, "[o]ne has got all the goodness, and the other all the appearance of it.'' There's a reason Austen tropes work, they are classic. Which is why there are countless retellings and reimaginings, but Tasha does all those read-a-likes one better, because this love triangle isn't the crux of the book. She takes one of the most famous plots ever written and makes it a subplot. She's not out to rewrite Pride and Prejudice, she's out to write her own story, create her own legacy. This book is about lost love, art theft, forgeries, antiquities, education, societal constraints, with a little Jane Austen thrown in. This is why I'm almost of the mind to just delete this paragraphs I've just labored over because while there is this kernel of Austen by just saying that people are going to have certain expectations. They're going to think it's Victorian Bridget Jones or some such nonsense that is in no way what this book is. This is the problem of being a reviewer, you can see what it's like but also what it is on it's own and my purpose in writing this review is not only to discuss my feelings of what I've read but to get you to pick up this book. PICK IT UP! Just go in without preconceptions.

Because this book literally has so much fun twisting and turning what you'd expect from this time period. While Tasha has today's sensibilities she clearly states in her afterward that she wrote it from the point of view of Victorian society, and then as a reader you take great joy as she finds all the loopholes and makes something that is both of it's time and of our time. What I took great glee in was all the art in the book, from classic Greek statuary and vases to the Impressionists working in Paris while Emily was there. While today we view the Impressionists as the greatest artists of that time, at the time they were frowned upon. I felt like for once all those art history classes I took were paying off! But more than that it's the counterpoint of a woman's life proscribed by Victorian mourning with that of the artistic scene in Paris at the end of the 1800s. Constriction versus liberation. Which is very much a theme throughout the book. While Emily is under so many strictures, at the same time she is given a liberty by her status that would never have been conferred on her had Philip survived. Being a widow of means is literally the only way women could have freedom in the Victorian era. To see Emily embrace all that that means is the greatest of joys. It makes you realize how much better we have it and that we need to embrace all that we have because we could have it far worse.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Alexander Autumn, And Only to Deceive, Colin Firth, Colin Hargreaves, Darcy, Greek, Jane Austen, Lady Emily, Pride and Prejudice, Tasha Alexander, The Da Vinci Code, The Impressionists, Victorian, Wickham, Widow

Back in 2007 two things happened that opened up new horizons for me with regard to my reading habits. I found Lauren Willig and I joined Goodreads. Lauren has easily become one of my favorite authors ever and because of my vocal love of her on Goodreads I found a plethora of like minded individuals who started recommending other authors to me. In fact one of my new friends was so insistent on another author they sent me the first book in the series, And Only to Deceive. And that, right there, was my first introduction to Tasha Alexander. Before the end of 2007 I was giving And Only to Deceive as a Christmas present and was thrilled to find her second book, A Poisoned Season, at the local library book sale. Since then my love of Tasha's writing and Lady Emily has only increased so while it was inevitable that I'd do a theme month praising this delicious historical mystery series instead I kind of feel like it should have happened sooner. In other words, it's about time for Alexander Autumn! It's about time to spend two, yes TWO months praising Lady Emily and all her adventures. So while it should have happened sooner, I hope that I can at least do it justice now. Here's to Alexander Autumn!

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:01 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A Poisoned Season, Alexander Autumn, And Only to Deceive, Christmas, Goodreads, Historical Fiction, Lady Emily, Lauren Willig, Libraries, Mysteries, Tasha Alexander, Theme Month

An Easy Death by Charlaine Harris
Published by: Saga Press
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The beloved #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Sookie Stackhouse series, the inspiration for HBO’s True Blood, and the Midnight Crossroad trilogy adapted for NBC’s Midnight, Texas, has written a taut new thriller—the first in the Gunnie Rose series - centered on a young gunslinging mercenary, Lizbeth Rose.

Set in a fractured United States, in the southwestern country now known as Texoma. A world where magic is acknowledged but mistrusted, especially by a young gunslinger named Lizbeth Rose. Battered by a run across the border to Mexico Lizbeth Rose takes a job offer from a pair of Russian wizards to be their local guide and gunnie. For the wizards, Gunnie Rose has already acquired a fearsome reputation and they’re at a desperate crossroad, even if they won’t admit it. They’re searching through the small border towns near Mexico, trying to locate a low-level magic practitioner, Oleg Karkarov. The wizards believe Oleg is a direct descendant of Grigori Rasputin, and that Oleg’s blood can save the young tsar’s life.

As the trio journey through an altered America, shattered into several countries by the assassination of Franklin Roosevelt and the Great Depression, they’re set on by enemies. It’s clear that a powerful force does not want them to succeed in their mission. Lizbeth Rose is a gunnie who has never failed a client, but her oath will test all of her skills and resolve to get them all out alive."

Since I first started reading Charlaine Harris, every new series has made me love her more. I seriously can not wait to get my hands on this new series.

Del Toro Moon by Darby Karchut
Published by: Owl Hollow Press, LLC
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Paperback, 258 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Ride hard, swing hard, and take out as many of those creepy critters as you can. Twelve year old Matt Del Toro is the greenest greenhorn in his family's centuries-old business: riding down and destroying wolf-like monsters, known as skinners. Now, with those creatures multiplying, both in number and ferocity, Matt must saddle up and match his father's skills at monster whacking. Odds of doing that? Yeah, about a trillion to one. Because Matt's father is the legendary Javier Del Toro - hunter, scholar, and a true caballero: a gentleman of the horse. Luckily, Matt has twelve hundred pounds of backup in his best friend - El Cid, an Andalusian war stallion with the ability of human speech, more fighting savvy than a medieval knight, and a heart as big and steadfast as the Rocky Mountains. Serious horse power. Those skinners don't stand a chance."

I sense a little bit of a western theme this week... but sign me up for this western with a shapeshifting twist.

Boneless Mercies by April Genevieve Tucholke
Published by: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Frey, Ovie, Juniper, and Runa are the Boneless Mercies - girls hired to kill quickly, quietly, and mercifully. But Frey is weary of the death trade and, having been raised on the heroic sagas of her people, dreams of a bigger life.

When she hears of an unstoppable monster ravaging a nearby town, Frey decides this is the Mercies' one chance out. The fame and fortune of bringing down such a beast would ensure a new future for all the Mercies. In fact, her actions may change the story arc of women everywhere.

Full of fierce girls, bloodlust, tenuous alliances, and unapologetic quests for glory, this elegantly spun tale challenges the power of storytelling - and who gets to be the storyteller. Perfect for fans of Maggie Stiefvater, V.E. Schwab, and Heidi Heilig."

Girl power!

Priest of Bones by Peter McLean
Published by: Ace
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Paperback, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The war is over, and army priest Tomas Piety heads home with Sergeant Bloody Anne at his side. But things have changed while he was away: his crime empire has been stolen and the people of Ellinburg - his people - have run out of food and hope and places to hide. Tomas sets out to reclaim what was his with help from Anne, his brother, Jochan, and his new gang: the Pious Men. But when he finds himself dragged into a web of political intrigue once again, everything gets more complicated.

As the Pious Men fight shadowy foreign infiltrators in the back-street taverns, brothels, and gambling dens of Tomas's old life, it becomes clear:

The war is only just beginning."

While there's a pleathora of new books out this week, I mean, seriously, look at this list of ones I just want to get, there's something about Priest of Bones that makes me NEED to read it.

Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor
Published by: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 528 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The highly anticipated, thrilling sequel to the New York Times bestseller, Strange the Dreamer, from National Book Award finalist Laini Taylor, author of the bestselling Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy.

Sarai has lived and breathed nightmares since she was six years old.
She believed she knew every horror, and was beyond surprise.
She was wrong.

In the wake of tragedy, neither Lazlo nor Sarai are who they were before. One a god, the other a ghost, they struggle to grasp the new boundaries of their selves as dark-minded Minya holds them hostage, intent on vengeance against Weep.

Lazlo faces an unthinkable choice - save the woman he loves, or everyone else? - while Sarai feels more helpless than ever. But is she? Sometimes, only the direst need can teach us our own depths, and Sarai, the muse of nightmares, has not yet discovered what she's capable of.

As humans and godspawn reel in the aftermath of the citadel's near fall, a new foe shatters their fragile hopes, and the mysteries of the Mesarthim are resurrected: Where did the gods come from, and why? What was done with thousands of children born in the citadel nursery? And most important of all, as forgotten doors are opened and new worlds revealed: Must heroes always slay monsters, or is it possible to save them instead?

Love and hate, revenge and redemption, destruction and salvation all clash in this gorgeous sequel to the New York Times bestseller, Strange the Dreamer."

I've been in love with Laini Taylor's writing since her Daughter of Smoke and Bone series and if everything goes to plan, IE, if I kick this cold, I will finally be seeing her in a week! Can. Not. Wait.

The Way of All Flesh by Ambrose Parry
Published by: Canongate Books
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 416 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Edinburgh, 1847. City of Medicine, Money, Murder.

Young women are being discovered dead across the Old Town, all having suffered similarly gruesome ends. In the New Town, medical student Will Raven is about to start his apprenticeship with the brilliant and renowned Dr Simpson.

Simpson’s patients range from the richest to the poorest of this divided city. His house is like no other, full of visiting luminaries and daring experiments in the new medical frontier of anesthesia. It is here that Raven meets housemaid Sarah Fisher, who recognizes trouble when she sees it and takes an immediate dislike to him. She has all of his intelligence but none of his privileges, in particular his medical education.

With each having their own motive to look deeper into these deaths, Raven and Sarah find themselves propelled headlong into the darkest shadows of Edinburgh’s underworld, where they will have to overcome their differences if they are to make it out alive."

This sounds like the series Murder Rooms about the dark origins of Sherlock Holmes! SOLD!

The Spellbook of Katrina Van Tassel by Alyssa Palombo
Published by: St. Martin's Griffin
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Paperback, 432 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"When Ichabod Crane arrives in the spooky little village of Sleepy Hollow as the new schoolmaster, Katrina Van Tassel is instantly drawn to him. Through their shared love of books and music, they form a friendship that quickly develops into romance. Ichabod knows that as an itinerant schoolteacher of little social standing, he has nothing to offer the wealthy Katrina - unlike her childhood friend-turned-enemy, Brom Van Brunt, who is the suitor Katrina’s father favors.

But when romance gives way to passion, Ichabod and Katrina embark on a secret love affair, sneaking away into the woods after dark to be together - all while praying they do not catch sight of Sleepy Hollow’s legendary Headless Horseman. That is, until All Hallows’s Eve, when Ichabod suddenly disappears, leaving Katrina alone and in a perilous position.

Enlisting the help of her friend - and rumored witch - Charlotte Jansen, Katrina seeks the truth of Ichabod Crane’s disappearance, investigating the forest around Sleepy Hollow using unconventional - often magical - means. What they find forces Katrina to question everything she once knew, and to wonder if the Headless Horseman is perhaps more than just a story after all. In Alyssa Palombo's The Spellbook of Katrina Van Tassel nothing is as it seems, and love is a thing even death won't erase."

October leads to thoughts of Sleepy Hollow... and throw in some witches, and I'm sold.

Dracul by Dacre Stoker and J.D. Barker
Published by: G.P. Putnam's Sons
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 512 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The prequel to Dracula, inspired by notes and texts left behind by the author of the classic novel, Dracul is a supernatural thriller that reveals not only Dracula’s true origins but Bram Stoker’s—and the tale of the enigmatic woman who connects them.

It is 1868, and a twenty-one-year-old Bram Stoker waits in a desolate tower to face an indescribable evil. Armed only with crucifixes, holy water, and a rifle, he prays to survive a single night, the longest of his life. Desperate to record what he has witnessed, Bram scribbles down the events that led him here...

A sickly child, Bram spent his early days bedridden in his parents' Dublin home, tended to by his caretaker, a young woman named Ellen Crone. When a string of strange deaths occur in a nearby town, Bram and his sister Matilda detect a pattern of bizarre behavior by Ellen—a mystery that deepens chillingly until Ellen vanishes suddenly from their lives. Years later, Matilda returns from studying in Paris to tell Bram the news that she has seen Ellen—and that the nightmare they've thought long ended is only beginning."

If there's one thing that screams October and Halloween, it's Dracula!

The Witch of Willow Hall by Hester Fox
Published by: Graydon House
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Paperback, 368 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Two centuries after the Salem witch trials, there’s still one witch left in Massachusetts. But she doesn’t even know it.

Take this as a warning: if you are not able or willing to control yourself, it will not only be you who suffers the consequences, but those around you, as well.

New Oldbury, 1821

In the wake of a scandal, the Montrose family and their three daughters—Catherine, Lydia and Emeline—flee Boston for their new country home, Willow Hall.

The estate seems sleepy and idyllic. But a subtle menace creeps into the atmosphere, remnants of a dark history that call to Lydia, and to the youngest, Emeline.

All three daughters will be irrevocably changed by what follows, but none more than Lydia, who must draw on a power she never knew she possessed if she wants to protect those she loves. For Willow Hall’s secrets will rise, in the end..."

Country House and witches? YES! Gothic Halloween at it's best!

Devil's Day by Andrew Michael Hurley
Published by: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A new novel by the author of The Loney, which was praised by Stephen King as "an amazing piece of fiction."

In the wink of an eye, as quick as a flea,
The Devil he jumped from me to thee.
And only when the Devil had gone,
Did I know that he and I'd been one...

Every autumn, John Pentecost returns to the farm where he grew up, to help gather the sheep down from the moors for the winter. Very little changes in the Endlands, but this year, his grandfather—the Gaffer—has died and John's new wife, Katherine, is accompanying him for the first time.

Each year, the Gaffer would redraw the boundary lines of the village, with pen and paper but also through the remembrance of tales and timeless communal rituals, which keep the sheep safe from the Devil. But as the farmers of the Endlands bury the Gaffer and prepare to gather the sheep, they begin to wonder whether they've let the Devil in after all."

Yes, OK, I admit it. This "Tuesday Tomorrow" is basically all my Gothic and Halloween reading for October... I mean, seriously, how could it not be? They all look so good!

When We Caught Fire by Anna Godbersen
Published by: HarperTeen
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the New York Times bestselling author of the Luxe series comes a lush, romantic novel about the love triangle that started Chicago’s infamous Great Fire.

It’s 1871, and Emmeline Carter is poised to take Chicago’s high society by storm. Between her father’s sudden rise to wealth and her recent engagement to Chicago’s most eligible bachelor, Emmeline has it all. But she can’t stop thinking about the life she left behind, including her childhood sweetheart, Anders Magnuson.

Fiona Byrne, Emmeline’s childhood best friend, is delighted by her friend’s sudden rise to prominence, especially since it means Fiona is free to pursue Anders herself. But when Emmeline risks everything for one final fling with Anders, Fiona feels completely betrayed.

As the summer turns to fall, the city is at a tipping point: friendships are tested, hearts are broken, and the tiniest spark might set everything ablaze.

Sweeping, soapy, and romantic, this is a story about an epic love triangle—one that will literally set the city ablaze and change the lives of three childhood friends forever."

Does the love triangle involve the cow? PLEASE say it does!

The Nightmarchers by J. Lincoln Fenn
Published by: Gallery Books
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Kindle, 349 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the award-winning author of Dead Souls and Poe comes an all-new bone-chilling novel where a mysterious island holds the terrifying answers to a woman's past and future.

In 1939, on a remote Pacific island, botanical researcher Irene Greer plunges off a waterfall to her death, convinced the spirits of her dead husband and daughter had joined the nightmarchers - ghosts of ancient warriors that rise from their burial sites on moonless nights. But was it suicide, or did a strange young missionary girl, Agnes, play a role in Irene's deteriorating state of mind?

It all seems like ancient family history to Julia Greer, who has enough problems of her own. A struggling journalist, she’s recovering from a divorce and is barely able to make rent, let alone appeal the court’s decision to give sole custody of their daughter to her ex-husband. When her elderly great-aunt offers her an outrageously large sum to travel to this remote island and collect samples of a very special flower, as well as find out what really happened to her sister Irene all those years ago, Julia thinks her life might finally be on an upward swing. She’s also tasked to connect with the island’s Church of Eternal Light, which her great-aunt suspects knows more about Irene’s tragic death than they’ve said.

But Julia finds this place isn’t so quick to give up its secrets. The Church is tight-lipped about the deaths that have contributed to its oddly large cemetery, as well as Irene’s final fate. The only person who seems to know more is a fellow traveler, Noah Cooper, who thinks that Julia's not the only one on a mission to find the rare flower...which, if the rumors are true, could have world-changing properties.

What Julia does know is that the longer she stays on the island, the more the thin line begins to blur between truth and lies, reality and the fantastical...until she finds herself face to face with the real reason why the island is taboo...."

Family secrets and a mysterious island? Yes please!

The Night Stalker by Robert Bryndza
Published by: Grand Central Publishing
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Paperback, 416 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"If the Night Stalker is watching, you're already dead...

In the dead of a swelteringly hot summer's night, Detective Erika Foster is called to a murder scene. The victim, a doctor, is found suffocated in bed. His wrists are bound and his eyes bulging through a clear plastic bag tied tight over his head.

A few days later, another victim is found dead, in exactly the same circumstances. As Erika and her team start digging deeper, they discover a calculated serial killer - stalking their victims before choosing the right moment to strike.

The victims are all single men, with very private lives. Why are their pasts shrouded in secrecy? And what links them to the killer?

As a heat wave descends upon London, Erika will do everything to stop the Night Stalker before the body count rises, even if it means risking her job. But the victims might not be the only ones being watched... Erika's own life could be on the line.

The global bestselling author of The Girl in the Ice is back with a heart-racing, electrifying thriller. If you love Angela Marsons, Rachel Abbott and Peter James, you'll be hooked on Robert Bryndza."

Yes, the name of the book is what drew me to it, but I have a feeling this book is just has heart pounding as The Golden State Killer, AKA the Original Night Stalker, any day.

The Dead Ringer by M.C. Beaton
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 272 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"New York Times bestseller M. C. Beaton's cranky, crafty Agatha Raisin―now the star of a hit T.V. show―is back on the case again in The Dead Ringer.

The idyllic Cotswolds village of Thirk Magna is best known for the medieval church of St. Ethelred and its bells, which are the pride and glory of the whole community.

As the bell-ringers get ready for the visit of the dashing Bishop Peter Salver-Hinkley, the whole village is thrown into a frenzy. Meanwhile, Agatha convinces one of the bell-ringers, the charming lawyer Julian Brody, to hire her to investigate the mystery of the Bishop’s ex-fiancée: a local heiress, Jennifer Toynby, who went missing years ago and whose body was never found...

Meanwhile, the bodies in the village just keep on piling up: the corpse of Larry Jensen, a local policeman, is discovered in the crypt. Millicent Dupin, one of a pair of bell-ringing identical twins, is murdered near the church. And Terry Fletcher, a journalist and (briefly) Agatha’s lover, is found dead in her sitting room! Agatha widens her investigation and very soon her main suspect is the handsome Bishop himself. But could he really be behind this series of violent killings, or is it someone who wants to bring him―and his reputation―down?"

For my mom, who just loves this series of books. Also, she would be mad if I didn't mention how much she hates the TV adaptation.

Sir Philip's Folly by M.C. Beaton
Published by: Blackstone Publishing
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Paperback, 160 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Just when everything at the Poor Relation Hotel seems to be running smoothly, Sir Philip brings in another poor relation, Mrs. Budge. When Sir Philip presents his paramour, Lady Fortescue swears great oaths and says the woman is probably related to half the costermongers in London and certainly does not possess one rich relative. Mrs. Budge does nothing but eat all day and refuses to do any work around the hotel. Worst of all, Miss Tonks seems to be taking the romance between Sir Philip and Mrs. Budge quite hard.

In the middle of all this commotion, a certain Lady Carruthers and her daughter Arabella come to stay at the hotel. Lady Carruthers is a widow trying to pass herself off as much younger than she actually is. To this end she dresses poor Arabella, who is all of nineteen, as a young schoolgirl and refuses to bring her out. It is up to the poor relations to deal with the lazy Mrs. Budge, find Arabella a husband, and trounce her terrible mother!"

And ANOTHER M.C. Beaton book for this month! Because I have NEVER heard of this Poor Relations series until now and that seems remiss of me.

Excellent Intentions by Richard Hull
Published by: Poisoned Pen Press
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Paperback, 199 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"With an introduction by Martin Edwards.

'From the point of view of the nation, it's a good thing that he died.'

Great Barwick's least popular man is murdered on a train. Twelve jurors sit in court. Four suspects are identified – but which of them is on trial? This novel has all the makings of a classic murder mystery, but with a twist: as Attorney-General Anstruther Blayton leads the court through prosecution and defence, Inspector Fenby carries out his investigation. All this occurs while the identity of the figure in the dock is kept tantalisingly out of reach.

Excellent Intentions is a classic crime novel laced with irreverent wit, first published in 1938."

I quite literally adore Poisoned Pen Press for reissue all these classics. I want them all!

The Kennedy Debutante by Kerri Maher
Published by: Berkley
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A captivating novel following the exploits of Kathleen "Kick" Kennedy, the forgotten and rebellious daughter of one of America's greatest political dynasties.

London, 1938. The effervescent "It girl" of London society since her father was named the ambassador, Kathleen "Kick" Kennedy moves in rarified circles, rubbing satin-covered elbows with some of the 20th century's most powerful figures. Eager to escape the watchful eye of her strict mother, Rose, the antics of her older brothers, Jack and Joe, and the erratic behavior of her sister Rosemary, Kick is ready to strike out on her own and is soon swept off her feet by Billy Hartington, the future Duke of Devonshire.

But their love is forbidden, as Kick's devout Catholic family and Billy's staunchly Protestant one would never approve their match. When war breaks like a tidal wave across her world, Billy is ripped from her arms as the Kennedys are forced to return to the States. Kick gets work as a journalist and joins the Red Cross to get back to England, where she will have to decide where her true loyalties lie--with family or with love..."

I have always been fascinated by Kick Kennedy since I found out about her connection to Deborah Mitford, as in, Deborah wouldn't have been the Duchess of Devonshire and Kick would have had her husband, and then shortly thereafter she, hadn't died.

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life by Eric Idle
Published by: Crown Archetype
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the ingenious comic performer, founding member of Monty Python, and creator of Spamalot, comes an absurdly funny memoir of unparalleled wit and heartfelt candor.

We know him best for his unforgettable roles on Monty Python—from the Flying Circus to The Meaning of Life. Now, Eric Idle reflects on the meaning of his own life in this entertaining memoir that takes us on a remarkable journey from his childhood in an austere boarding school through his successful career in comedy, television, theater, and film. Coming of age as a writer and comedian during the Sixties and Seventies, Eric stumbled into the crossroads of the cultural revolution and found himself rubbing shoulders with the likes of George Harrison, David Bowie, and Robin Williams, all of whom became dear lifelong friends. With anecdotes sprinkled throughout involving other close friends and luminaries such as Mike Nichols, Mick Jagger, Steve Martin, Paul Simon, Lorne Michaels, and many more, as well as John Cleese and the Pythons themselves, Eric captures a time of tremendous creative output with equal parts hilarity and heart. In Always Look on the Bright Side of Life, named for the song he wrote for Life of Brian and which has since become the number one song played at funerals in the UK, he shares the highlights of his life and career with the kind of offbeat humor that has delighted audiences for five decades. The year 2019 marks the fiftieth anniversary of The Pythons, and Eric is marking the occasion with this hilarious memoir chock full of behind-the-scenes stories from a high-flying life featuring everyone from Princess Leia to Queen Elizabeth."

While, in my mind, Eric Idle has always been in the middle of the back Python-wise, he has been the one to most continually carry on their legacy, from the live show of his I saw years and years ago all the way to Spamalot. Long may Eric Idle reign.

Little Me by Matt Lucas
Published by: Canongate Books
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Paperback, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"This is the story of little me, from pudgy, awkward child to pudgy, slightly less awkward adult – via school musicals, adolescent angst, stand-up, Shooting Stars, Little Britain, Doctor Who, love, loss, wigs and giant pink babygros. And, in case your attention span is as short as mine, it comes in a handy A to Z format. So B is for Baldy! (yes, people did shout this at me in the playground), G is for Gay (because I'm an actual real life gay) and I is for Idiot (I was born a berk. I probably even stubbed my toe on the way out).

It will warm your heart, make you snort out loud in public and there’s even a catchy song in the middle. What I’m saying is, please buy this book. It is VERY good. I know I’m biased because I wrote it but it is."

It makes me a little sad that people probably know Matt Lucas now more for Doctor Who instead of the genius that is Little Britain...

The Greatest Love Story Ever Told by Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman
Published by: Dutton
Publication Date: October 2nd, 2018
Format: Hardcover, 288 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman reveal the full story behind their epic romance--presented in a series of intimate conversations between the couple, including photos, anecdotes, and the occasional puzzle.

The year: 2000. The setting: Los Angeles. A gorgeous virtuoso of an actress agreed to star in a random play, and a basement-dwelling scenic carpenter said he would assay a supporting role in the selfsame pageant. At the first rehearsal she surveyed her fellow cast members, determining if any of the men might qualify to provide her with a satisfying fling. Her gaze fell upon the carpenter, and like a bolt of lightning the thought struck her: no dice. Moving on.

Yet, unbeknownst to our protagonists, Cupid had merely set down his bow and picked up a rocket launcher . . . that fired a love rocket (not a euphemism). The players were Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman, and the resulting romance, once ignited, was . . . epic. Beyond epic. It resulted in a coupling that has endured to this day; a sizzling, perpetual tryst that has captivated the world with its kindness, athleticism, astonishingly low-brow humor, and true (fire emoji) passion.

How did they do it? They came from completely different families, ignored a significant age difference, and were separated by the gulf of several social strata. Megan loved books and art history; Nick loved hammers. But much more than these seemingly unsurpassable obstacles were the values they held in common: respect, decency, the ability to mention genitalia in almost any context, and an abiding obsession with the songs of Tom Waits.

Eighteen years later, they're still very much in love and have finally decided to reveal the philosophical mountains they have conquered, the lessons they've learned, and the myriad jigsaw puzzles they've completed. Presented as an oral history in a series of conversations between the couple, the book features anecdotes, hijinks, photos, and a veritable grab bag of tomfoolery. This is not only the intoxicating book that Mullally's and Offerman's fans have been waiting for, it might just hold the solution to the greatest threat facing our modern world: the single life."

I'd like to point out to Dutton that I don't hold grudges for no being approved for as ARC of this book because my love of Nick and Megan transcends petty grudges like not getting an ARC...

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: An Easy Death, Anna Godbersen, Charlaine Harris, Dracula, Eric Idle, Gothic, Halloween, Laini Taylor, M.C. Beaton, Matt Lucas, Murder Rooms, Muse of Nightmares, Nick Offerman, Sleepy Hollow, Westerns, Witches

So I'm an AMC Insider. Why you might ask as I don't watch many shows on AMC, well, the reason I first signed up wasn't for the lovely gift card drawing, that was a recent edition, I mainly signed up because they asked questions about BBC America programing and I wanted to clearly state that BBC America should be showing actual British shows not filling their schedule with The X-Files and whatever Star Trek they feel like at the moment. Star Trek is a "little" understandable because of Patrick Stewart, but The X-Files!?! In between stating all my outrage and answering questions about my favorite Dirk Gently characters I started to get all these surveys about the upcoming show Killing Eve. The initial promos had me entirely uninterested, because they were vague and I had no idea what the show was about. After probably the tenth promo I watched I realized it was an espionage driven game of cat and mouse starring Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer and I decided to give it a try. Plus, Jodie Comer was really great in The White Princess so for me she was the real draw and the fact that only Oh got an Emmy nomination is shocking because I discovered in that first episode what many people came to realize as they joined the bandwagon late, Killing Eve is an exquisite dark comedy about two women on opposites sides inextricably drawn to each other where Comer is amazing in her instability. I was so desperate for more that I picked up Luke Jennings's compilation of Villanelle novellas, Codename Villanelle, to get more of a fix. But this adaptation is one of those rare occasions where it's better than the source material. Instead of a female James Bond with a hyperactive sex drive where everything is laid bare from the beginning, we're given a twisty tale that will keep you guessing until the very end and thanking whatever deity you believe in that it was renewed for a second series.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Adaptation, And the Emmy Goes To, BBC America, Codename Villanelle, James Bond, Jodie Comer, Killing Eve, Luke Jennings, Patrick Stewart, Sandra Oh, Spies, Star Trek, THe White Princess, The X-Files, Villanelle