Svetlana's Reads and Views

Name of Book: Casanova's Secret Wife Author: Barbara Lynn Davis ISBN: 978-1-4967-1231-8 Publisher: Kensington Type of book: 1774, 1756, Casanova, marriage, affair, relationships, taboo, scandal, nunnery, second chances, friendship, frenemy, pregnancy, growth Year it was published: 2017 Summary: Set in eighteenth-century Venice and based on an actual account by Giacomo Casanova—here is a lush tale of desire and risk, offering a little known portrait of the writer as a young man. Caterina Capreta was an innocent girl of fourteen when she caught the attention of the world’s most infamous chronicler of seduction: Giacomo Casanova. Intoxicated by a fierce love, she wed Casanova in secret. But his shocking betrayal inspired her to commit an act that would mark her forever . . . Now twenty years later on the island of Murano, the woman in possession of Caterina’s most devastating secret has appeared with a request she cannot refuse: to take in a noble-born girl whose ...

Name of Book: The Belle of Two Arbors Author: Paul Dimond ISBN: 978-1-943-29021-5 Publisher: Cedar Forge Press Type of book: Poetry, Robert Frost, Michigan, Sleeping Bear Dunes, Ojibwe, 1913-1953, 1970s, slow, philosophical, slice of life, Ted Roethke, Emily Dickinson, Wystan Auden, friends, family, fear of fame, raising family, Marmie Year it was published: 2017 Summary: Born at the turn of the twentieth century in Glen Arbor, near the dunes of Northern Michigan, young Belle is the first child of a gruff stove-works boss and a crippled mother who weaned Belle on the verse of Emily Dickinson. When a natural disaster results in her mother's death and nearly takes the life of her younger brother Pip, Belle creates a fierce, almost ecstatic farewell song. Thus begins her journey to compose a perfect Goodbye to Mama. At 21, Belle ventures south to Ann Arbor for university, with teenaged Pip in tow. There, she befriends Robert Frost, Ted Roethke and Wystan Auden and f...

All true bookworms have their dream list of authors they’d love to meet, but what if you could plan your perfect panel of authors (or even characters) you’d love to hear speak at a conference? As my long-time readers (thanks everyone!) know, one isn't certain on what review they will find on my blog because one day I might post a contemporary women's fiction title; another day a historical romance, and yet few days later I might go with suspense. However what is consistent on my blog is my focus on historical fiction and a large focus on literature from around the world, in particular from East Asia, with few instances from Southeast Asia, thus my dream conference/panel will be a mix of historical fiction as well as East Asian authors.   One of the moderators for my dream conference will be Margaret George because she has written a variety of biographies that take place from Tudor Era to more obscure and ancient such as a biography of Helen of Troy and her more rec...

Name of Book: The Secrets of the Abbey Author: Kathleen C Perrin ISBN: 9780692877975 Publisher: Langon House Part of a Series: The Watchmen Saga Type of book: 1500s, Wars of Religion in France, christian themes and messages, prayer, Mount Saint Michel, marriage, knowledge, ancenstry, time travel, protection, memory loss, amnesia, fame and fortune, making decisions Year it was published: 2017 Summary: In the final book (III) of The Watchmen Saga, Katelyn Michaels is distraught when she finds herself back in the United States in modern times after unwillingly leaving a comatose Nicolas behind on Mont Saint Michel in 1429. When a series of remarkable events facilitates her return to the Mount and unveils why Katelyn was called as a Watchman, her fondest hope is to be reunited with Nicolas, regardless of the circumstances. However, when Nicolas unexpectedly appears with a new mission for Katelyn to help him thwart yet another threat to the Mount, she is devastated to l...

Title of the book:  a very French christmas; the Greatest French Holiday Stories of all time Authors: Various Publisher: New Vessel Press Publishing Date: 2016 ISBN: 978-1-939931-50-4 Summary: A continuation of the very popular Very Christmas Series from New Vessel Press, this collection brings together the best French Christmas stories of all time in an elegant and vibrant collection featuring classics by Guy de Maupassant and Alphonse Daudet, plus stories by the esteemed twentieth century author Irène Némirovsky and contemporary writers Dominique Fabre and Jean-Philippe Blondel. With a holiday spirit conveyed through sparkling Paris streets, opulent feasts, wandering orphans, kindly monks, homesick soldiers, oysters, crayfish, ham, bonbons, flickering desire, and more than a little wine, this collection encapsulates the holiday spirit and proves that the French have mastered Christmas. This is Christmas à la française—delicious, intense and unexpected, proving...

From the New York Times bestselling authors of America’s First Daughter comes the epic story of Eliza Schuyler Hamilton—a revolutionary woman who, like her new nation, struggled to define herself in the wake of war, betrayal, and tragedy. Haunting, moving, and beautifully written, Dray and Kamoie used thousands of letters and original sources to tell Eliza’s story as it’s never been told before—not just as the wronged wife at the center of a political sex scandal—but also as a founding mother who shaped an American legacy in her own right. We’re celebrating Eliza Schuyler Hamilton’s Birthday today and you get the gift! Don’t miss the beautiful cover below and a special giveaway, and don’t forget to pre-order your copy today! About My Dear Hamilton: A Novel of Eliza Schuyler Hamilton (Coming 4.3.2018) : Wife, Widow, and Warrior in Alexander Hamilton’s Quest to Form a More Perfect Union From the  New York Times  bestselling authors of  America’s First Daught...

Name of Book: Whirligig Author: Richard Buxton ISBN: 9780995769304 Publisher: Self published Type of book: secrets, crush, promise, war, Civil War, England, parliament, union army vs rebel army, 1862-1864, Tennessee, plantation, whirligig Year it was published: 2017 Summary: Shire leaves his home and his life in Victorian England for the sake of a childhood promise, a promise that pulls him into the bleeding heart of the American Civil War. Lost in the bloody battlefields of the West, he discovers a second home for his loyalty. Clara believes she has escaped from a predictable future of obligation and privilege, but her new life in the Appalachian Hills of Tennessee is decaying around her. In the mansion of Comrie, long hidden secrets are being slowly exhumed by a war that creeps ever closer. The first novel from multi-award winning short-story writer Richard Buxton, Whirligig is at once an outsider’s odyssey through the battle for Tennessee, a touching sto...

True east- Raymond Ahrens SR: August 10th, 2017 FR: August 28th, 2017 Traitors knot- Cryssa Bazos SR: July 29th, 2017 FR: August 28th, 2017 Path of Lucas-Susan Bellefeuille SR: August 27th, 2017 FR: A House Divided-Pearl S Buck SR: March 11th, 2016 FR: N/A Whirlgig- Richard Buxton SR: July 10th, 2017 FR: August 1st, 2017 Blood moon- Ruth Hull Chatlien SR: August 14th, 2017 FR: Casanova's Secret wife- Barbara Lynn-Davis SR: August 4th, 2017 FR: August 14th, 2017 The Belle of two arbors- Paul Dimond SR: July 25th, 2017 FR: August 24th, 2017 The Republic of uzupis- halJi SR: January 4th 2017 FR: The luster of lost things- Sophie Chen Keller SR: August 28th, 2017 FR: The secret of the abbey- Kathleen c. Perrin SR: July 23rd, 2017 FR: August 10th, 2017 The Comet Seekers Helen Sedgwick SR: January 17th 2017 FR: The Chesapeake Bride- Mariah Stewart SR: August 24th, 2017 FR: August 31st, 2017 A gentleman in Moscow- amor Towles SR: June 8th, 2017 FR...