Svetlana's Reads and Views

Book Details: Book Title: Twofer Murder by Lauren Carr Category: Adult fiction, 400 pages Genre: Mystery Publisher: Acorn Book Services Release date: November 17, 2017 Tour dates: Nov 1 to 30, 2017 Content Rating: PG + M (Please be aware that TWOFER MURDER is a murder mystery. There are depictions of murder and some violence--though easy on the gore contents. No f-words but there may be some mild profanity, and mild religious expletives such as "damn", "hell" and "Oh God!". Some depictions of brief sexual content (kissing). No drug use or underage drinking among the protagonists.) Book Description: Twofer murder? What’s a twofer murder? Twofer Murder is a treat for fans of best-selling author Lauren Carr’s fast-paced mysteries! Lauren’s latest novel contains the main characters from her three successful series: Mac Faraday, Lovers in Crime, and Thorny Rose mysteries. The guys go away for a fishing weekend only to get caught up in the murde...

Name of Book: Beyond Love Author: D.D. Marx ISBN: 978-0-9972481-1-1 Publisher: self published Part of a Series: The Beyond Series Type of book: Contemporary, friendships, power from beyond, true love, together, following dreams, romance, chick-lit Year it was published: 2017 Summary: After trusting in her beloved friend Dan’s guidance from above, Olivia is finally on the path to realizing her destiny. Staring at a blank canvas after ditching her raucous corporate life and meeting the love of her life, Finn McDaniels, a hot, widowed, celebrity chef, she is ready to begin anew. When she arrives back home to tie up the loose ends in Chicago, she receives more frightening news further delaying her journey with Finn. Unable to control the outcome, she begins questioning her trust and faith in Dan once again. She distracts herself the only way she knows how, by diving head first into a new project. What seemed like a time killer may actually be the thing that saves her an...

Diverse Reads on my Blog #11 For a while I thought of doing it as a weekly thing, but with a lot of wonderful reads on my plate, and very little time, and because I don't want to put pressure on myself, I decided to do it monthly. That way I'll get some time to read diverse books if and I don't have to feel rushed. For my 7 Books Around the World Challenge, this is what the list looks like. What is also interesting are the book covers, that ultimately they make up a rainbow. Africa: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi (Yellow) Antarctica: The Comet Seekers by Helen Sedgewick (Dark blue) Asia: The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu (Royall version has violet cover) Australia: The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough (Orange) Europe: To Dance with kings by Rosalind Larker (Red) North America: Sacajawea by Anna Lee Waldo (Green) South America: The Seamstress by Francine van Peebles (Light blue) Blast from the Past Hungry Tigress by Jade Lee The Tigress: the counterpart to th...

Name of Book: The Woman in the Camphor Trunk Author: Jennifer Kincheloe ISBN: 978-1-63388-363-5 Publisher: Seventh Street Books Part of a Series: Anna Blanc Mysteries Type of book: 1908, Chinatown, tong, hop sing girls, Cracker jacks riddles, mystery, humor, hints of Chinese/white women relationships, jealousy, murder, engagement, detective, Los Angeles, Bing Kong tong, Hop Sing tong Year it was published: 2017 Summary: Los Angeles, 1908. In Chinatown, the most dangerous beat in Los Angeles, police matron Anna Blanc and her former sweetheart, Detective Joe Singer, discover the body of a white missionary woman, stuffed in a trunk in the apartment of her Chinese lover. Her lover has fled. If news gets out that a white woman was murdered in Chinatown, there will be a violent backlash against the Chinese. Joe and Anna plan to solve the crime quietly and keep the death a secret. So does good-looking Mr. Jones, a prominent Chinese leader who has mixed feelings about helpin...

Name of Book: The Secret Life of Anna Blanc Author: Jennifer Kincheloe ISBN: 978-1-63388-080-1 Publisher: Seventh Street Books Part of a Series: Anna Blanc Mysteries Type of book: Los Angeles, murder, brides, groom, 1907, mystery, murder, woman detective, humor, bickering chemistry, corruption, greed Year it was published: 2015 Summary: It's 1907 Los Angeles. Mischievous socialite Anna Blanc could match wits with Sherlock Holmes, but in her world women are not allowed to hunt criminals. Determined to break free of the era's rigid social roles, she buys off the chaperone assigned by her domineering father and, using an alias, takes a job as a police matron with the Los Angeles Police Department. There she discovers a string of brothel murders, which the cops are covering up. Seizing her one chance to solve a crime, she takes on the investigation herself. If the police find out, she'll get fired; if her father finds out, he'll disown her; and if...

Name of Book: To be a Queen Author: Annie Whitehead ISBN: 978-1-78407-165-3 Publisher: FeedARead.com Type of book: 874-918, Mercia, Wessex, King and Queen, battles, vikings, daily life, royalty, ruling, gardening, bee-keeping, marriage, partnership, peacekeeper, family Year it was published: 2015 Summary: This is the true story of Aethelflaed, the 'Lady of the Mercians', daughter of Alfred the Great. She was the only female leader of an Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is the tale of one family, two kingdoms and a common enemy. Born into the royal house of Wessex at the height of the Viking wars, she is sent to her aunt in Mercia as a foster-child, only to return home when the Vikings overrun Mercia. In Wessex, she witnesses another Viking attack and this compounds her fear of the enemy. She falls in love with a Mercian lord but is heartbroken to be given as bride to the ruler of Mercia to seal the alliance between the two Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. She must learn to sub...

Name of Book: Death Comes Author :Sue Hallgarth ISBN: 978-0-9855200-4-5 Publisher: Arbor Farm Press Type of book: 1926, writing, Willa Cather and Edith Lewis, Mabel Dodge Luhan, New Mexico, scandals, relationships, mystery, deaths, racism, prostitution Year it was published: 2017 Summary: Following On the Rocks, Sue Hallgarth's first Willa Cather and Edith Lewis mystery, ''Death Comes'' gives us another glimpse into the life and work of the Pulitzer-Prize winning novelist Willa Cather and her talented life partner. The year is 1926. Willa and Edith return to Mabel Dodge Luhans pink adobe in Taos, New Mexico. Willa is writing ''Death Comes for the Archbishop.'' Edith is sketching Taos pueblo and hoping for a visit to the nearby D.H. Lawrence ranch. The previous summer they had stumbled on a woman's body. Now the headless bodies of two women add to the mystery. Sue Hallgarth presents an intimate portrait of Cather, Lewis, the spec...

Name of Book: Lucky Boy Author: Shanthi Sekaran ISBN: 978-1-101-98226-6 Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons Type of book: infertility, illegal immigration, love, culture, privilege, Mexico, California, undocumented workers, surviving, foster parents, detention centers, border, immigration, marriage, budgeting, career, friendships, motherhood Year it was published: 2016 Summary: A heart-wrenching novel about the transformative power of motherhood and the redemptive beauty of love, perfect for readers of Jacquelyn Mitchard, Jenny Offill, and Cristina Henriquez. "A fiercely compassionate story about the bonds and the bounds of motherhood and, ultimately, of love." --Cristina Henriquez, author of The Book of Unknown Americans In this astonishing novel, Shanthi Sekaran gives voice to the devotion and anguish of motherhood through two women bound together by their love for one boy. Soli, a young undocumented Mexican woman in Berkeley, CA, finds that motherhoo...

Title of the book:  one sip at a time; Learning to live in Provence Author:  Keith van Sickle Publisher: Self published Publishing Date: 2016 ISBN: 978-0-9983120-0-2 Summary: Keith and Val had a dream – to live in Provence, the land of brilliant sunlight, charming hilltop villages and the deep blue waters of the Mediterranean. But there were two problems: they weren’t French speakers and they had full-time jobs. So they came up with a plan… Follow their adventures (and misadventures) as they quit their jobs, become consultants and split their time between two countries. Laugh along as they build a life in Provence, slowly mastering a new language and making friends with the locals over long meals and just a bit too much wine. This light and breezy memoir is full of wry observations on France, like the power of cheese to sway elections, the right and wrong ways for men to kiss each other, and the law requiring that blood donors must speak French. If you’...

Title of the book: Purple Turtle Graded Level 01 Author: N/A Publisher:  Aadarsh Pvt. Ltd Publishing Date: 2017 ISBN: N/A Summary: A1 Edutainment takes you to the world on an amazing new reading programme with Purple Turtle. The first level of Purple Turtle Graded Readers includes a set of 12 books with interesting stories and activities and 150 word count. This level is exclusively for learners who have just started reading. It is based on ATOS and Lexile reading level system. Comes with A Day with Purple; The Lost Bag; What Is That Smell?; A Family Visit; A Surprise for Roxy; The Runaway Wagon; Counting Insects; Purple Makes Soup; The Animal Parade; Music for Melody; Biggy's Bad Manners; Purple's New Shoes. Author Info: (From the iRead Website) Purple Turtle is India’s 1st International brand with its educational content in several languages sold in more than 30 countries including Russia, China, US and UK. The character of Purple Turtle has delighted ch...

Last month I was unable to achieve my goals when it came to finishing and reading some books outside of book tours, I'm sad to report. Perhaps this month will be different? I don't have as many book tours on my blog, therefore I will be able to read and finish some books that are awaiting me for a while. I also am planning on reviewing some backup books, namely Traitor's Knot by Cryssa Bazos and To Be A Queen by Annie Whitehead. Cross fingers that I can review them! For this month, I'm excited to report that a new book by Elizabeth St. John will be appearing on my blog, and I also will make sure that two of Jennifer Kincheloe's books will also be reviewed. Some other authors appearing on my blog include Death Comes by Sue Hallgarth which is a bit out of my depth because I know very little about the American literary scene in America. Also the first level of Purple Turtle books will appear along with a book spotlight for Twofer Murder by Lauren Carr (Book will b...