The Vineyards of Champagne

This was a very special book for me, because there were themes in the book that surprised me and were incredibly relevant given my year. I thought The Vineyards of Champagne by Juliet Blackwell was going to be your typical pleasant vacation in France with a side of historical fiction (World War I) enjoyable winter...

All the Ways We Said Goodbye

By Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White Loved this book! I am thrilled that I am able to review All the Ways We Said Goodbye by Williams, Willig, and White because I have enjoyed their two previous books and think this team of women does an amazing job writing together. All the Ways We...

The Whispers of War

By Julia Kelly The Whispers of War is a novel of historical fiction that is set during World War 2, rather than being about World War 2, which is a distinction that I enjoyed about this story. It covers a small part of the war in the U.K. that I didn't know much about, attitudes...

Bookopoly 2020 Reading Challenge

I've been thinking a lot about reading challenges this year and what I wanted to do for one. I've never actually completed one. Often because the requirements are so specific, that if I can find a book that meets the criteria, the book just isn't something that interests me. I saw a post on Facebook...

House of Brides

The House of Brides by Jane Cockram was a fun modern-day gothic novel in the tradition that I love: A young woman grows up with a mother who is estranged from her family, after her mother's death she goes to the family's creepy estate to try to meet her mother's family and figure out why...

Bringing Down the Duke

Bringing Down the Duke by Evie Dunmore is a Victorian romance that is getting a lot of buzz right now. The premise of the story is about Annabelle, a former vicar's daughter who is unmarried and in her twenties and is relegated to the role of servant in the home of her cousin. She earns...

Tidelands

The book that I have been most looking forward to reading this year is Tidelands by Philippa Gregory. While Gregory has quite a reputation for her historical fiction about royalty, my favorite has long been The Lady of the Rivers, who is just the mother of a queen. I was hoping Tidelands would be more...

Mid-Year Book Freak-Out Tag 2019

I am using this post to announce that I am starting a Book Tube channel on Youtube, and this post lists all the books I talk about in my first episode. I am doing a Tag that a lot of book tubers have been doing, even if we are a little bit past the middle...

The Winemaker’s Wife

The Winemaker's Wife by Kristin Harmel is an historical fiction novel and a dual timeline novel (which is my favorite thing). The story follows three women, two during World War II who live and work at a vineyard because both of their husbands are involved in winemaking. And one woman in 2019 who is dealing...

State of Lies

State of Lies by Siri Mitchell is a departure from her previous novels, which are mostly historical, with a few contemporary early novels. With State of Lies, Mitchell moves into a new genre of political suspense. The story begins with a Washington D.C. couple, who both work in or for the government. They have one...