Svetlana's Reads and Views

  Name of Book: The Last Collection Author: Jeanne Mackin ISBN: 978-0-399-58590-6 Publisher: Berkley  Type of book: 1938-1940s, Great Depression, ww2, 1954, fashion, Coco Chanel, Elsa Schiaparelli, primary colors, life, Paris France, America, balls, wealth, siblings, lovers, mistresses, patience, colors  Year it was published: 2019 Summary: With World War II looming over Paris, an American woman becomes entangled in the intense rivalry between iconic fashion designers Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli in this "fascinating" (Hazel Gaynor) novel from the acclaimed author of The Beautiful American. Paris, 1938. Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli are fighting for recognition as the most successful fashion designer in France, and their rivalry is already legendary. They oppose each other at every turn, in both their politics and their designs: Chanel's are classic, elegant, and practical; Schiaparelli's are bold, experimental, and surreal. When Lily Sutter, a recently widow...

  Name of Book: Madeleine Last French Casquette Bride- In New Orleans  Author: Wanda Maureen Miller  ISBN: 978-1-63649-565-1 Publisher: Atmosphere Press  Part of a Series: Last Casquette Bride  Type of book: 1728-1751, marriage, Louisiana, colonies, arrival, France, Casquette Brides, survival, Native Americans, loyalty, piety, land  Year it was published: 2021 Summary: In 1728, beautiful, resourceful Madeleine Boucher is one of the last in a group of poor young girls given modest dowries in trunks, or casquettes, by the French government-then shipped off to America, where they are intended as wives for the French settlers in the Louisiana Territory. Despite a series of romantic travails, Madeleine remains fiercely dedicated to finding true passion and securing the promise of her new adopted land, free from the prejudices of the past. The story of Madeleine and the other casquette girls is the story of New Orleans itself. Like the city, they struggled throug...

  Name of Book: Dawn Empress Author: Faith L Justice ISBN: 9780917053269 Publisher: Raggedy Moon books Part of a Series: The Theodosian Women  Type of book: Byzantine, 404-453, domination, women, christianity, anti-Judaism, religion, Pulcheria, Emperors of the West and East, Rome, Catholicism and Orthodoxy, churches, rule, piety, siblings, sacrificing marriage and children for rule,  Year it was published: 2020 Summary: As Rome reels under barbarian assaults, a young girl must step up… After the Emperor’s unexpected death, ambitious men eye the Eastern Roman throne occupied by seven-year-old Theodosius II. His older sister Princess Pulcheria faces a stark choice: she must find allies and take control of the Eastern court or doom the imperial children to a life of obscurity—or worse! Beloved by the people and respected by the Church, Pulcheria forges her own path to power. Can her piety and steely will protect her brother from military assassins, heretic bishops, scheming ...

The more I live, the more I realize that people cherry pick on whom to help and stand up for. Prime example? Last year when people had "racial awakening". This year, when Asian community is going through hardship, same people who "racial awakening" for one group of people fell asleep or they don't care, which frustrates me a lot. Heres what I will say: I matter. My son matters.  Book tours/ spotlights  The last collection by Jeanne Mackin The Kennedy Moment by Peter Adamson  The Foreign Girls by Sergio Olguin Pieces of Eight by Steve Goble Madeleine by Wanda Maureen Miller    Possible reads: Washington's spies by Alexander Rose  Rough passage to London by Robin Lloyd  The lost girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff  The secret lives of dentists by W.A. Winter  Island on fire by Sophie Schiller An invincible summer by Mariah Stewart  The measure of time by Gianrico Carofiglio  Blood and treasure by Bob Drury and Tom Clavin  All the childr...

 Vera- Carol Edgarian SR: March 22nd, 2021 FR: April 16th, 2021 Dawn empress- Faith L Justice SR: April 1st, 2021 FR: April 10th, 2021 Madeleine last French casquette bride- Wanda Maureen Miller SR: March 3rd, 2021 FR:  April 1st, 2021 The land beyond the sea- Sharon Kay Penman  SR: March 18th, 2021 FR: Island on fire- Sophie Schiller SR: April 10th, 2021 FR:   An invincible summer- Mariah Stewart SR: April 30th, 2021 FR:  The secret lives of dentists- W.A. Winters  SR: April 16th, 2021 FR:  April 30th, 2021 Nonfiction