A Lady At Willowgrove Hall

[Book 3] of the Whispers on the Moors Series

     The story of Cecily Faire and Nathaniel Stanton is likely the best of Sarah E. Ladd's Whispers on the Moors Series. I enjoyed all three of them to a certain degree, but there was something more to A Lady At Willowgrove Hall. She seemed to pay more attention to the emotions and the characters - Cecily and Nathaniel. That's not to say her characters in her other books suffered any neglect, but Cecily and Nathaniel felt more developed and rounded, and I found it easier to fall into the story with them.

     Cecily starts off on the wrong foot entirely. Her father disowns her and drops her unceremoniously on the doorstep of a ladies' school in the area, never to see her again, separating her in the meantime from her twin sister, Leah. All as a result of a sixteen-year-old infatuation. And shame plagues her, harshly and desperately, over the dishonour she feels she will be forever responsible for.

    Now in a fit of circumstance and unforeseen opportunity, Cecily leaves Rosemere, the ladies' school under the guidance of Mrs. Sterling, to become a companion for the infamous Mrs. Trent of Willowgrove Hall. She feels as though she is assuming some kind of facade; living a lie in a constant state of paranoia, fear, and shame. She was not raised to be a lady's companion. Her class status really begs the question of whether she is even eligible for the position. But it is upon Mrs. Sterling's recommendation that she goes, and she refuses to disappoint.

     Cecily is the most curious mixture of propriety and rebellion, submission and opinion, fearless and fearful. She is so secretive, and yet so intent on being honest. So strong willed, and yet so very fragile. And she hides a tormenting secret. When she meets Nathaniel, he's the image of propriety, dedication, and loyalty. Far too good for her. But to him, she is kind and proper and has every bit of innocence he believes he lacks - far too good for him. He has his own secrets to hide.

     And if they're both too good for each other, then where does that leave them?

--Elise--

For more information on A Lady at Willowgrove Hall by Sarah E. Ladd, visit our website here.

Josiah's Treasure

     Everything seems to be falling into place, finally, after such a long ordeal of messes and hardships. Sarah Whittier seems to possess some manner of fortune at last, albeit shortly following the death of the only man she ever looked to as a sort of father. She inherited his house. His accounts. Everything she needs to make her dream a reality.


     To her credit, Sarah is not a selfish woman. She never wanted Josiah Cady to pass away and leave her with everything, but maybe, for once, it's a blessing in disguise. Maybe things are starting to look up and she can finally lease a space for the art studio she's been longing to open up and run with the help of the immigrant women she has befriended and so desperately longs to help.

     That is, if the sudden appearance of some Daniel Cady claiming to be Josiah's long-lost son doesn't get in the way. But a man bent on revenge will do whatever he wills to get the inheritance he believes he deserves, and a woman with a noble cause and wonderful intentions isn't going to stand in his way if he can help it.

     But can he?

     Nancy Herriman pits two atrociously mismatched characters against one another, destined for anger and hatred , and spins their interactions into something more. Lesson are taught and learned and there is a great deal of hurt to endure while they struggle against each other. How can two people with such opposing desires ever get along?

     As it turns out, it only takes a a touch of danger and a dash of trust to bring them closer together, if only a little. A matter of life and death is enough to put revenge on hold, even if it's only for a little while, and it seems, enough to make one second guess.

     Josiah's Treasure is a curious story, with curious characters that develop quite profoundly throughout. Intriguing enough with the question as to whether or not Sarah will succeed, the addition of ever present danger and battles of wit make for a rather engaging, light read.

--Elise--

For more information on Josiah's Treasure by Nancy Herriman, visit our website here.

The Headmistress of Rosemere

[Book Two] of the Whispers on the Moors Series

     The Headmistress of Rosemere is a delightful continuation of The Heiress of Winterwood from the Whispers on the Moors series. In most respects, the two books are separate of one another. You could read either one without the other and not be lacking in any areas of information or lack thereof. While book one focuses on Graham Sterling, book two takes into account William Sterling, a young man of the most troubled disposition. Caught up in gambling and betting on horse races, he has managed to squander his entire fortune and place himself in heavy debt - a fact he tries - and fails - rather desperately to hide from the general public. Appreciating the high value people place on gossip, he really oughtn't be surprised.

     With his funds rapidly waning and his creditors growing increasingly impatient, he finds himself attacked one snowy evening on the road home and he's forced to seek refuge within the halls of Rosemere - a property he leases to the Creightons where they run a school for girls.

     Patience Creighton has since taken on the role of headmistress there, with her father's sudden passing and her brother's mum disappearance. Her mother has fallen into a state of seemingly irreparable grief and there is no one left to take on that mantle. She hurries the unconscious Mr. Sterling into the school late into the night when he's found passed out in the stables, recognized immediately as the infamous William of Eastmore Hall.

     What follows their initial meeting is an odd set of circumstances and a whirlpool of emotions and uncertainties. The development of both Patience and William's characters is both intriguing and suspenseful in its own right, not to mention the added stress from creditors, and the sudden reappearance of her very elusive, very married brother. Undeniably, both Patience and William are pushed together by a set of outward and surrounding circumstances that provide anticipation, worry, frustration, fluffy joy, and pure delight all the way through.

     Sarah Ladd's way of making one feel for the characters is skillful, and her setting and historical accuracy attracts fans of Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters, namely in reference to Jane Eyre. I had just watched the new movie when I pulled the Whispers on the Moors series off the shelf, and it continued with Charlotte Bronte's setting and atmosphere most satisfactorily.

--Elise--

For more information on the Whispers on the Moors: The Headmistress of Rosemere by Sarah E. Ladd, visit our website here.

After a Fashion

     Sarcasm, wit, arguments, humour, dog attacks, china projectiles, and a great deal of pretending to be someone you're not for the sake of money and reputation. A gem quite unexpected.

     Honestly, I started reading After a Fashion with low expectations. A fluffy romance. Moderate substance. Jen Turano managed to surprise me quite pleasantly. Her sarcastic wit was truly and unexpectedly refreshing.

    Her main character, Harriet Peabody, is a headstrong hat maker with a no-nonsense, very business-like attitude. Losing her job does not bode well for her, which is something that happens no later than two chapters into the book in a very comical situation involving a dog attack and a self-righteous upper-class woman who loses all form of dignity.

     The entire tale is filled with moments quite like these, some more amusing than others, some more embarrassing, but all equally entertaining. Harriet Peabody is paid a large sum of money to be a business partner to one of the wealthiest men in the country. Her job description includes dressing up and providing intelligent conversation in hopes of securing a business opportunity and increasing her employer's already enormous fortune.

     A simple matter of being herself in order to acquire three thousand dollars she never imagined possible becomes suddenly not so simple the more time she spends in the company of her employer. Their inevitable tumble into a winding romance is a wonderfully intriguing and entertaining series of mishaps and events wrapped in an engaging cast of characters.

     I don't often laugh aloud while reading, but this is one of those books where I simply could not help myself. Harriet Peabody is a sarcastic, headstrong young woman, and her employer, Oliver Addleshaw, is a cocky gentleman with a dangerous sense of curiosity and a perpetual need to do business. Together they make an amusing - albeit suited - pair, with a rocky start and a tumultuous plot-line to revolve around them.

     Giggles and jaw-drops galore.

--Elise--

For more information on After a Fashion by Jen Turano, visit our website here.

The Heiress of Winterwood

[Book One] of the Whispers on the Moors Series

     The Heiress of Winterwood is an intriguing idea that begins, really, with a very uncustomary proposal. A proposal, first of all, from a woman living in the nineteenth century. And she proposes to a man she has never met.

     We are introduced to Amelia Barrett of Winterwood, and the Sterling family of Eastmore Hall. Amelia is within reach of a very large inheritance as a result of her father's death, with the condition that she must be married before she turns twenty-four, lest the fortune go to someone else. In this case, however, Amelia Barrett's concern is not with the money of her inheritance, but a different matter entirely. Were she to follow with her uncle's plan she would be wed well before her twenty fourth birthday to a man of seemingly ideal character and upbringing. But then of course, there is the matter of the child.

     In the process of her courtship with Edward Littleton, Amelia cares for a pregnant Katherine Sterling. This woman's husband, Graham, is a captain of the navy whom she hasn't seen since shortly after they married. When Katherine dies after giving birth, the child, Lucy, is left in Amelia's care. Amelia promises Katherine just before she dies that she will care for her daughter to her last breath, but when Edward Littleton refuses to allow the child to remain at Winterwood after they marry, her entire future is thrown into disarray. The only way for her to keep her promise to Katherine, and to maintain the funds to do so, is for her to marry Graham Sterling in time to keep her inheritance.

     Never mind that his wife died only months ago, and now as he returns from his duties to meet his daughter for the first time he is proposed marriage by a brazen and headstrong woman he has never encountered before. She presents the proposal as a business arrangement - nothing more, nothing less, with the promise that Graham may go about his life however he pleases so long as she may continue caring for baby Lucy, whom she has come to love as her own child.

    Even if he were to agree to her, how many others will try to stand in her way?

--Elise--

For more information on Whispers on the Moors: The Heiress of Winterwood by Sarah E. Ladd, visit our website here.

Beyond All Dreams

     In her latest release, Beyond All Dreams (Pub. Jan 2015), Elizabeth Camden details the intriguing lives of Anna O'Brien, a librarian at the Library of Congress in 1897, and Luke Callahan, a struggling congressman very recently demoted to the Committee on Fisheries to his great embarrassment. Introduced separately, the two characters' stories intertwine slowly and then all at once. Camden does a very good job of providing worry and suspense; wondering how things could possibly turn out in light of the messes that everyone seems to slip into.

     The events of the first chapter seem to introduce a complicated plot while simultaneously crushing anyone's hope of learning anything substantial on the subject. Anna O'Brien is approached by the navy, regarding an error she believes to be documented in the country's history, only to be ordered in no uncertain terms to forget about the matter entirely and move on with her life.

     But Anna is a researcher, and even under threat it seems difficult - if not downright impossible - for her to let go.

     It is perhaps their tragic childhood stories that bring Anna and Luke so close to one another when their mutual use of research forces them to align. Their personalities are as different as night and day and their life experiences have taught them such different lessons. Originally they meet each other at such odds, and in Anna's case, this leads her to near-disgust. But that sentiment quickly changes and the trouble then lies with who will be the first to admit it.

     For the sake of clarification, Beyond All Dreams does not focus solely on the relationship of its characters, though that could be considered a very key point. Camden does place heavy emphasis on who her characters are, for themselves and towards each other, and she does go into the emotional state of each, but this book is as much a suspenseful novel about controversy and betrayal as everything else. She adds authenticity with a careful portrayal of the time period and she approaches such questions as peace and war; right and wrong. The controversy that Anna has supposedly uncovered leads to eavesdropping, spies, stalkers, and a mess of justice between her and the truth about her past.

     If nothing else, Camden's investment in her characters make them worth fighting for - or reading for - as the case may be.

--Elise--

For more information on Beyond All Dreams by Elizabeth Camden, visit our website here.

Storm Siren [and her Fury]

"I raise my chin as the buyers stare. Yes. Look. You don't want me. Because, eventually, accidentally, I will destroy you."

                       --from Chapter One of Storm Siren (Mary Weber)--

     Nym is born to a kingdom that does not want her. It controls her. Her kind are killed at birth: Elementals, with powers beyond strength and reckoning, and they are always male. She is the exception. She should not exist.

     In fact, she would prefer not to.

     Sold again and again into slavery, Nym is finally bought by a buyer who knows her abilities for what they are and decides to use them to acquire power. Nym is forced into training, to become Faelen's deadliest weapon. Never having been considered human, she sees little improvement from slave to weapon, except that she is slowly learning to control the curse that draws her emotions into the deadly power of the elements of the storm. A power that, until now, had only ever enabled her to kill people.

     Mary Weber uses Storm Siren and its sequel, Siren's Fury, to touch on the subject of pain, both physical and emotional. While other topics are addressed throughout the books, pain is the most prominent. Being born into suffering. Surviving pain. Accepting. And living with the knowledge of it.

     Nym is a relatable, understandable character, and for anyone going through pain and looking for an escape, even her fictional experience can speak to that. Not only helpful, the Storm Siren series is a web of suspense, intrigue, messy politics and crushing battles, and a psychological journey for everyone to follow. Nym claws for your attention and clings to it with both hands, until the book is done. And even then, her story lingers.

     Mary Weber's words are impactful and punctuating through the eyes of her characters. Her words take hold and force you to read, feverishly, until the very end. It is written as youth fiction, but even a mature mind will appreciate the flow of this trilogy.

     Guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat until the release of Book Three.

--Elise--

     For more information on Storm Siren and Siren's Fury by Mary Weber, visit our website here and here.

Drawing Fire

Today's recommendation is a treat from the boss; the first book of an eventual trilogy - the Cold Case Justice series:

"One of the best fiction books I've read this year. I highly recommend Drawing Fire by Janice Cantore."

--Lando Klassen,
   Owner

As seen on the back of the book itself:

     "With a possible serial killer stalking elderly women in Long Beach, California, homicide detective Abby Hart's best lead is Luke Murphy, an irritating private investigator who saw a suspect flee the scene of the latest homicide. When Abby discovers that the most recent victim is related to the governor, she's anxious to talk to him about a cold case that's personal to her - one Luke is interested in as well.

     As she learns more about the restaurant fire that took her parents' lives years ago, Abby discovers why Luke is so invested in finding the ones responsible. But the more they uncover, the more questions they have. Can Abby find peace without having all the answers?"

     This is a book for the mystery lovers; the detectives and the sleuths; the crime-fighters and the Crime TV Watchers. Take the time for suspense and intrigue, politics and ethics, murder, madness, and haunting backstories lurking in the dark.

     With multiple mysteries intertwining through the pages, it is nigh impossible to avoid the vast number of twists and turns that Cantore applies to her writing. Her background in law enforcement offers an insight to reality that many crime series seem to lack, and the emotional growth and representation of her characters only adds to that realism. With so many questions on so many pages, Drawing Fire is truly a riveting read.

     For more information on Drawing Fire by Janice Cantore, visit our website here.

Doon, Destined for

Book 1

     There are always those moments where escape would be preferable if it meant literally vanishing from this world and entering a life of importance somewhere else - a world not quite like this one. Maybe not at all like this one. A place where you have a clear and defined role that only you can play; where everyone knows it and will either try to help you or try to hinder you.

     Carie Corp and Lorie Langdon take this desire to heart and put it onto the page with a cast of characters ranging from relatable to stereotyped to outlandish to desirable, and back again, all jumping in between present-day reality and the fictional realm of Doon.

Book 2

     Two authors, two main characters: Verronica and Mackenna, setting out to explore the land of Scotland when they tumble upon the Brig O' Doon and the fantastic kingdom that lies beyond. They spiral into a web of adventure, danger, and romance that spins the kingdom of Doon to life.

     For Verronica, Doon is a kind of escape from a life that has left her wanting much. And for Mackenna it is more of a waking nightmare, and a very strange inconvenience. Two best friends, close enough to be sisters, find themselves falling into a story of royalty, world-hopping, spying, and most certainly true love. And while love is a definite focus in the story, it is only one of many, including danger and mystery, action and adventure, a couple of princes, a few disgruntled brigands, and a haunting, deeply intriguing witch-hunt.

     Doon and its subsequent sequals, including Destined for Doon, Shades of Doon (release date September 2015), and a fourth addition expected September of 2016, are the perfect escape from reality. Written for teenage girls, they are certainly a light and fluffy read, but would appeal to anyone looking for a lighthearted escape from the day-to-day; a chance to relax and ponder something out of the ordinary; a little bit of romance as far-fetched and beautiful as it is and some vicarious travel to Scotland and its lush scenery and historic appeal. Scottish accents abound.

--Elise--

 Available in hardcover and paperback.

For more information on Doon by Cary Corp and Lorie Langdon, visit our website here.

The Knight of Elderan

For a fall into the realm of the fantastic - in the root, literal sense of the word - Anna Thayer brings us the epic trilogy of The Knight of Eldaran.

"I just started reading The Traitor’s Heir, the first book in the The Knight of Eldaran trilogy by Anna Thayer, and I’m hooked. I’m impressed by Anna Thayer, who is not only a Tolkien and C.S. Lewis scholar, but a great writer as well as she sustains tension and intrigue throughout this well-woven and ever-unfolding tale. The Broken Blade, which came out last month, completes the series, and although I’m sorry I  hadn’t heard of them sooner, I’m happy to be able to read them all without suffering the wait between volumes. I think anyone who has enjoyed Stephen Lawhead will appreciate this epic series."
-- Pierre Dery --

Followed by The King's Hand and then the final installment, The Broken Blade, Thayer's The Traitor's Heir follows the story of Eamon Goodman and his transition into the ranks of the Gauntlet: the army of the overlord Eldered. Through her use of tension and captivating suspense, Thayer creates this epic and provides a cast of strong characters with developed relationships to keep you coming back for answers.



For more information on the series visit our website here:
http://www.houseofjames.com/search/eldaran