Svetlana's Reads and Views

Publication Date: November 25, 2014 Kensington Books Formats: eBook, Trade Paperback Pages: 272 Series: Kurland St. Mary Mystery, Book Two Genre: Historical Mystery A season in London promises a welcome change of pace for two friends from the village of Kurland St. Mary—until murder makes a debut… With the reluctant blessings of their father, the rector of Kurland St. Mary, Lucy Harrington and her sister Anna leave home for a social season in London. At the same time, Lucy’s special friend Major Robert Kurland is summoned to the city to accept a baronetcy for his wartime heroism. Amidst the dizzying whirl of balls and formal dinners, the focus shifts from mixing and matchmaking to murder when the dowager Countess of Broughton, the mother of an old army friend of Robert, drops dead. When it’s revealed she’s been poisoned, Robert’s former betrothed, Miss Chingford, is accused, and she in turn points a finger at Anna. To protect her sister, Lucy enlists Robert’s aid in drawi...

Hey everyone, Very sorry, but review for Us by David Nicholls might be posted late :( Very recently I have to attend to some very important matters which means less reading time for me. Thanks for understanding!

Name of Book: christmas at Tiffany's Author: Karen Snow ISBN: 978-0-06-236410-4 Publisher: William Morrow Type of book: travel, self discovery, New York, London, Paris, friendships between women, modeling, cooking, elegance, cultures, dating, trauma, 2000s, language of flowers Year it was published: 2011 Summary: What do you do when the man you pledged your life to breaks your heart and shatters your dreams? You pack your bags and travel the big, wide world to find your destiny--and your true love . . . Ten years ago, a young and naive Cassie married her first serious boyfriend, believing he would be with her forever. Now her marriage is in tatters and Cassie has no career or home of her own. Though she feels betrayed and confused, Cassie isn't giving up. She's going to take control of her life. But first she has to find out where she belongs . . . and who she wants to be. Over the course of one year, Cassie leaves her sheltered life in rural Scotla...

Hello, My review for Christmas at Tiffany's will be a little late today. Thanks for understanding!

Name of Book: The Vineyard Author: Michael C Hurley ISBN: 978-0-9761275-6-7 Publisher: Ragbagger Press Type of book: Vineyard, Martha's Vineyard, north, old money, family, duty, wealth, culture, friendship, betrayal, 2000s, choices, freedom, mild religion Year it was published: 2014 Summary: From Michael Hurley, winner of the Chanticleer Reviews Grand Prize for his debut novel, THE PRODIGAL, comes a complex and ambitious tale of old money, young passion, and ancient mystery in a classic New England seaside town. Dory Delano, Charlotte Harris, and Turner Graham have been drifting through life since their days as roommates at Smith College, ten years ago. Dory is resisting taking the reins of her family’s legacy and fortune even as she relishes the fabulous lifestyle it affords her in the fashionable seaside resort of Martha’s Vineyard. She invites her old friends to join her for a summer on the Vineyard in hopes of rediscovering the innocence of old days and hea...

Hello, My apologies but the review for Seldom Come By will be a little late, hopefully by tomorrow evening, but if not, I'll try to make it on Saturday or Sunday. Thank you for your patience and understanding! 

Title:  One Woman's extraordinary journey from the depths of despair to The Temple of All Knowing; A near death experience chronicles Author: Lee Papa First copyright date: 2014 Type of book: Spiritual, near death experience, growing, Reiki, 2000s, happiness General subject matter: The writer of the book had a near death experience which helped her realize what might be important and what might not be important as well as help her follow her intuition instead of spurning it like she used to. Special features: N/A Price: $14.95 ISBN/ASIN: 9781622171255 Summary: Temple of All Knowing is a memoir of one woman’s passage from personal and professional turmoil to spiritual awakening. A compelling straight forward and sometimes humorous account of the most personal of journeys as this 40-something woman finds herself in Sin City with promise of a new life, new husband and elderly mother living with her. She instead is uncovered as a central character in the deepe...

Q.What genre do you write and why? A. I write historical romances and romantic historicals. What’s the difference? Simply the amount of time the story focuses on the romance theme vs other themes in the story. Why do I write historicals and medievals in particular? That’s hard to say. I’ve always been interested in history, from ancient through the 1800s (pre-Industrial), but when I got to college I just seemed to get more and more caught up in the Middle Ages and have been happily focused there ever since. Q. Your book is set in medieval Poitou and Venice. Have you ever been there? A. No, but a few years ago my sister and I briefly visited Torino and Torricella Peligna in the Abruzzo area of Italy where my grandmother’s family came from. That trip wasn’t nearly long enough. We both hope to go back some day and spend more time getting to know Italy, including hopefully on our next trip, Venice! Q. Do you ever get writer’s block? What helps you overcome it? A. Usually...

Name of Book:  Loving Lucianna Author:  Joyce DiPastena ISBN/ASIN:  B00NG8NWGW Publisher: Sable Tyger Books Type of book: Venice, England, Medieval Love, 1100s, siblings, never-do-well, secrets, friendships, godmother, clean romance Year it was published: 2014 Summary: Sir Balduin de Soler gave up long ago on love. He never had the means to support a wife until an unexpected advancement in his fifties allows him to reassess his future just as the lovely Lucianna enters his life. Lucianna Fabio harbors a secret, painful memory from her past that has kept her unwed, as well. Now in her forties, she thought herself too old to marry until she meets Sir Balduin. Now suddenly their lonely autumn lives feel very much like spring again . . . until Lucianna’s brother appears without warning and threatens to revive the secret that will destroy Lucianna’s second chance at love. Characters: The main characters are Lucianna, who is titled a Lady but comes from ...

Title: Memory Card Full Author: Liz Weber First copyright date: 2014 Type of book: dogs, growing pains, singlehood, playing the field, discovering how to satisfy self, parent/daughter relationships, sisterhood, friendships General subject matter: Recently, Rufus, a thirty-seven year old woman's dog has passed away and she has to learn how to let go of him and how to make the life work for her instead of life making her work Special features: N/A Price: $20.00 ISBN/ASIN: 978-0-9886968-7-7 Summary: A book for anyone who has loved and lost and found the space in that loss to become the person they were meant to be. When Rufus, Liz Weber’s oddly proportioned but adorable dog dies of old age, her life begins to unravel. She is forced to let go of the one constant in her life and move forward. Memory Card Full is a memoir of her life as a bartender, model and aspiring writer in Manhattan before and after Rufus. Without him, she is alone and broken-hearted and h...

Name of Book: Vicissitudes of Life Author: Wang Xiaoying ISBN: 978-1-60220-221-4 Publisher: Tuttle Type of book: China, Shanghai, 1980s, economy, old China vs modern China vs new China, decisions, keeping face, international student Year it was published: 2010 Summary: Vicissitudes of Life tells the story of Xiaoyi, a post-graduate studying in America during the early years of China's opening up. Xiaoyi has opportunities in AMerica, but pining for his wife and determined to contribute to the building of the "new China" he decides to return home. Before he leaves a former lover reads his fortune using a traditional book of divination. She warns him that a dire fate awaits him in China. Xiaoyi ignores the warning and returns home. Back in Shanghai, he is reunited with his wife Fanfan, a singer in a local chorus, and is offered a job at his former university. However, it quickly becomes apparent that not everyone is happy about Xiaoyi's appointment...

Title of the book: Village of Secrets; Defying the Nazis in Vichy France Author: Caroline Moorehead Publisher: Harper Publishing Date: 2014 ISBN:  978-0-06-220247-5 Summary: From the author of the runaway bestseller A Train in Winter comes the extraordinary story of a French village that helped save thousands, including many Jewish children, who were pursued by the Gestapo during World War II. Le Chambon-sur-Lignon is a small village of scattered houses high in the mountains of the Ardèche. Surrounded by pastures and thick forests of oak and pine, the plateau Vivarais lies in one of the most remote and inaccessible parts of Eastern France, cut off for long stretches of the winter by snow.  During the Second World War, the inhabitants of the area saved thousands wanted by the Gestapo: resisters, freemasons, communists, downed Allied airmen and above all Jews. Many of these were children and babies, whose parents had been deported to the death camps in...