So Many Books, So Little Time

The Unwomanly Face of War by Svetlana Alexievich This is one of my favorite books of the year.  Pevear and Volokhonsky (the best Russian translators!) have created a wonderful translation of Ms. Alexievich's amazing oral history.  The author interviewed Soviet women who fought in World War II and recorded their stories.  These stories were beautiful and heart-breaking and such an eye-opening look at the Soviet experience in World War II.  The translators did such a good job and making it seem as thought the book was written in English; it wasn't choppy or weird, it flowed exactly as it should.  I would highly encourage anyone interested in this part of history to read this book.  I will definitely be buying a copy for my home library.  5 stars. The Last Tudor by Philippa Gregory I have such a love/hate relationship with this author but I can't turn down a book on the Grey sisters.  I find them to be so fascinating!  Tha...

  Not a Sound by Heather Gudenkauf I love Gudenkauf's books!  Not a Sound was an excellent mystery made even more compelling by the fact that the main character is deaf.  I did figure out who the killer was before the end but I thought the story as a whole was so good that I didn't mind.  It was as much a mystery story as it was a story of the main character dealing with being deaf and growing from that experience.  Excellent read! 4 stars . After Anatevka by Alexandra Silber Fiddler on the Roof is one of my favorite musicals so when I saw this book, I had to read it.  I've always wondered what happened after the movie ended and this book tried to do that.  After Anatevka tells the story of Hodel as she traveled to, and lived in, Siberia while her husband was in prison.  I thought the story was pretty slow and at times I honestly had no idea what was going on.  The ending was really rushed and overall, I just wasn't a f...

I have a back log of NetGalley reads so I thought I would do a Mini Review post. Stolen Beauty by Laurie Lico Albanese I am fascinated by the story of the Adele Bloch-Bauer painting by Gustav Klimt so I was very excited to read this book.  I've seen the movie and a couple documentaries, read some books and even have some Klimt reproductions in my office.   I enjoyed the discussion of fin de siecle Vienna and all the creative movements (artistic and otherwise) that were blossoming during Klimt's life.  It was really interesting to read about how society was changing and art was changing with it.  As a whole, I enjoyed the story but I think the characters were hard to relate to.  At times, I really liked Adele's character and other times, she seemed very whiny and I had a hard time feeling sympathetic to her plight.  The story also jumped back and forth between different time periods and that transition wasn't very smooth.  It was an inter...

The Tsarina's Legacy by Jennifer Laam This book is the sequel to The Secret Daughter of the Tsar (which I really liked) and follows Veronica as she travels to Russia to claim the role as the heir to the Romanovs.  The story flashes back and forth between Veronica's story and the story of Grigory Potemkin who was one of Catherine the Great's lovers.  I really enjoyed the Potemkin story line; it was unique and intriguing.  The rest of the story was just okay; Veronica's story was slow and I had a hard time staying interested in what was happening to her.  I also found the past and present stories to be poorly connected so it almost seemed like they were two separate books.  3 stars. I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The Crown's Game by Evelyn Skye This was a fun read and I loved the combination of historical fiction and fantasy!  The magical aspects were neat and I really enjoyed the descriptions ...

  Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein I feel bad for saying this, but this book didn't really do anything for me.  I know a lot of people raved about it and had so many emotions about it but I just didn't get it.  It was very slow and hard to get into and I guess I just wasn't overwhelmed by the big event.  It wasn't a bad book and I really enjoyed a lot of the interrogation scenes (not because I enjoy that but because they were well-written and the dialogue was interesting).   I really wanted to love this book but I just didn't.  3 stars.   Sinner by Maggie Stiefvater I loved the Wolves of Mercy Falls books so I had to read this book.  It's all about Cole and Isabel and it was  really good.  Cole is a fascinating character; he's a total smart-ass but also a very sensitive soul.  I enjoyed getting to know him more and watching him deal with his demons.  He is a very unpredictable character so there were a lo...

The Kill Artist by Daniel Silva I love a good spy story!  The Kill Artist is the first book in the Silva's Gabriel Allon series and it is really good.  I had picked up book 9 and 10 in the series and really enjoyed them so I decided that i needed to start from the very beginning.  Gabriel Allon is a fascinating character; an art restorer by day, an Israeli spy by night.  He's a killer with a conscious which makes for good reading.  There was a lot of detail in this book which was boring at times but I think was probably necessary to set the scene for future books.  3 stars. Anastasia's Secret by Susanne Dunlap I know I've said this before but I will read anything that is about Russian history.  This story is told from Anastasia's point of view as her family's world collapses.  I really enjoyed it even though I knew how it was all going to end.  I liked that the author gave Anastasia a love interest and some happiness in her ...

The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon This book is awesome.  I just happened upon it at the library and was immediately intrigued.  It is one of the creepiest books I've read in a long time.  There were points where I had to stop reading it because it was I was home alone and getting freaked out.  I love when a book can really freak me out! The story kept me interested from page one and I never saw the end coming.  There was one character, Katherine, who I didn't like and I thought she really didn't add much to the story as a whole.  Otherwise, it was a great read. 4 stars. The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon If you haven't read any of Carlos Ruiz Zafon's books, you should do so ASAP!  I read The Shadow of the Wind several years ago and loved it and have been meaning to read this one for a long time.  The Angel's Game is the second book in the Cemetary of Forgotten Books series and I really enjoyed it.  It's definitely w...

  Mariana by Susanna Kearsley Every time I read another Susanna Kearsley book, I fall more and more in love with her writing.  Her stories are so amazing!  Mariana pulled me in from the first page and did not let go.  I loved the romance and the history and I loved how Kearsley pulled in the whole idea of reincarnation.  The end was beautiful and so surprising.  I did not see it coming at all but the fact that it was a surprise made the end even better.  5 stars. The Tao of Martha by Jen Lancaster I want to be Jen Lancaster's BFF.  She is one of the funniest people out there.  I have read all of her memoirs and this one is just as hysterical as the rest.  Reading about her attempts to follow Martha Stewart's way of life was so fun and I found myself laughing out loud a couple of times.  There was also a more serious side to this book and some of the events left me in tears.  I highly recommend this book if ...

The Morning Star by Robin Bridges This is the third book in the Katerina trilogy and I was a little disappointed by it.  I really liked the first two books but I just struggled to get into this one.  There was a lot going on and it was hard to keep track of things.   I did like the way the author wrapped things up between Katerina and Georgi but the whole thing just seemed kind of anticlimactic.  3 stars. The Secret Daughter of the Tsar by Jennifer Laam I really enjoy alternative histories as well as anything about Russia so I was really drawn to this book.  I love the idea of a surviving Romanov no matter how fictional the story may be.  This book is based on the idea that Nicholas and Alexandra had a fifth daughter who was spirited away from the palace and raised in Europe.  It bounces between past and present and I especially loved the parts of the story set in Imperial Russia.  The way the author set up the story of the fi...

  The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley I think this is one of the best books I have read in a long time.  I was completely sw ept away by the characters and the story.  I love how Kearsley's books weave the past and the present together so beautifully.  Kearsley is such a great writer; the setting and characters are always so magical.  The romance was epic and overall this was a fantastic book!  5 stars. The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley The Firebird is amazing in that it contains characters from both The Winter Sea and The Shadow Horses.  The present characters are from the latter and the past characters are from the former.  It was awesome to find out what happened after The Winter Sea as there was a lot left wide open at the end.  I also loved to getting see Robbie from The Shadowy Horses all grown up.  It is actually because of this book that I wanted to read Kearsley's books.  The fact that it was about Russ...

The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead I love this series so much and this book was a great addition to the series.  I loved reading Adrian's point of view and the story in general was just awesome.  Sydney's sister makes an appearance in this book and I am so not a fan of hers.  There is also a crazy cliffhanger ending.  I seriously don't know if I can handle waiting until the next book comes out!  4 stars. Allegiant by Veronica Roth Okay, I'm going to be honest, I have never really been a super fan of these books.  I think these are books I read simply because they were so popular.  I wasn't wowed by Divergent but I did enjoy Insurgent so I decided that I needed to finish the series.  Allegiant was just okay.  I didn't like the ending and the story took turns that kind of surprised me.  Overall, I am just not impressed by the trilogy in general.  3 stars.

Dark Places by Gillian Flynn Gillian Flynn is such a good writer!  Her books are seriously messed up but still so good.   The mystery sucked me in pretty quick and wouldn't let go until the end.  There was kind of a twist at the end and honestly, I never saw it coming.  I had a total 'wait, what?' moment.  The main character was difficult to like at first and kind of prickly but I grew to like her.  I would recommend this to anyone who loves a good mystery.  4 stars. Notorious Nineteen by Janet Evanovich I have thoroughly enjoyed this series but I think it's time to end it.  This latest installment was definitely better than the 18th book but there's only so many times Stephanie's car can get blown up before it stops being funny.  I have loved all of the characters in this series but I'm hoping that Evanovich doesn't continue to drag this out too much longer.  It did have some laugh out loud moments and was a much nee...

The White Princess by Philippa Gregory I am not a huge fan of Philippa Gregory and yet I just keep reading her books.  I am so intrigued by the War of the Roses that I just can't stay away from her Cousin's War series.  Elizabeth of York is a fascinating historical figure and I can't help feeling bad for her in both real life and this story.  I must say that I really enjoyed this book.  This is probably the first book I've read where Elizabeth Woodville seemed like a pretty nice person and a very loving mother; she was portrayed in a completely different manner in this book than in others I've read.  I enjoyed that but I'm not sure if it's an accurate depiction or not.  Also, while I loved the fact that Gregory had one of the 'princes in the tower' survive, I was annoyed that she asserts in her author's note that she believes that this version of the story is correct.  I feel like sometimes she makes a lot of assertions that she doesn...

I've decided to start posting mini-reviews every now and again.  A lot of times there are books I read that I just don't have enough to talk about to warrant a whole review or even a shorter 'quick review'.        Six Days in Leningrad by Paullina Simons   I loved The Bronze Horseman and this memoir chronicles the trip that Paullina Simons took to Russia to do research for it.  Simons is originally from Russia and this trip was her first time back after leaving when she was a child.  It was a sad but fascinating look at what it's like to revisit one's childhood.  Her memories didn't always coincide with reality and it seemed to be quite shocking for her when this was brought to her attention.  I want to visit Russia so bad and this book only encouraged that desire.  It's only available as a kindle ebook which is kind of a hassle and there were a lot of typos but I would still recommend this book.  4 stars. T...