The Storm We Made by Vanessa Chan

December 11, 2024

The Storm We Made by Vanessa Chan

Cecily Alcantara and her family have been living in Malaya under Japanese occupation. Before that, it was the British occupation. They manage to stay under the radar, until Cecily's son Abel disappears along with a number of other teenage boys. Cecily believes this is her fault - for years before the war, she was an informant for the Japanese, believing that they would restore Asia to Asian rule, and now she considers this to be her punishment.

A different perspective on World War II, set in Malaya (now Malaysia) and told from the perspectives of the residents of a suburb of Kuala Lumpur. There are many layers to the story and the plot started to drag about halfway through. I started skimming until the last 50 pages when the threads of the story come together. Will appeal to readers who enjoyed The Shadow of the Banyan or When the Elephants Dance, which I thought were much better books.

A Malayan town under Japanese occupation

An Assassination on the Agenda by Karen Baugh Menuhin

July 16, 2024

An Assassination on the Agenda by Karen Baugh Menuhin

Lady Emily Hardcastle and her faithful maid and sometimes deadly companion Florence Armstrong are enjoying a summer lunch with their good friends the Farley Strouds, when Emily's brother Harry summons them, because their unique skills are needed first in Bristol, and then in London. The heir to the Austrian throne and his wife are due to visit England with a trade delegation, and Harry has heard rumors of a planned assassination attempt that his department needs to stop. He enlists Emily and Flo to evaluate the security arrangements, since who would suspect a society lady and her maid to head up a security team?

Lady Hardcastle and Flo are back for their 11th adventure, an entertaining mystery filled with charming characters, punny language, malapropisms, and dry British humor. It's best to read the series in order to understand the various characters' backstories, but also for the sheer fun of the series. Perfect vacation or summer reading. Recommended for readers who enjoy cozy light-hearted British mysteries.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie - although they survive the assassination attempt here, they are not so lucky some years later in Sarajevo

The Unkept Woman by Allison Montclair

September 27, 2023

The Unkept Woman by Allison Montclair

Miss Iris Sparks and Mrs. Gwen Bainbridge are co-owners of The Right Sort Marriage Bureau. Following the end of World War II, many people are alone and adrift, and the two women have a talent for matching people up. But Gwen still struggles to retain guardianship of her son, and Iris' undercover activities during the war are catching up with her. When a woman is found shot to death in Iris' apartment, Iris finds herself at the top of the suspect list.

The fourth adventure for Sparks and Bainbridge, this one centered on Iris (who I personally feel is a lot more interesting and doesn't cry nearly as much as Gwen). We do learn more about Gwen's troubles, but there is very little about the agency and their clients. The ending indicates that there will be continuing adventures. I would recommend reading the series in order.

Mastering the Art of French Murder by Colleen Cambridge

April 6, 2023

Mastering the Art of French Murder by Colleen Cambridge

Set in post-World War II Paris, American expatriate Tabitha meets budding chef Julia Child, who lives in the building across the street. Tabitha lives with her grandfather and "uncle" and tutors students in French and English while enjoying the Parisian nightlife. When an actor is found murdered in the basement of Julia's building after a late-night party at Julia's apartment, Tabitha feels compelled to find the killer.

Since I credit Julia Child's television show and cookbook with the fact that I can cook well, the title of this book screamed my name (my mother didn't allow anyone in the kitchen while she prepared meals, although I did learn from my grandmother how to boil canned asparagus for 45 minutes until it was gray slime as a special Thanksgiving treat). It's a decent mystery but unfortunately the narrative is slow-moving. The main character has to explain everything in detail, usually more than once. It's more interesting to show the action rather than describe or explain. I started skimming about halfway through. The author does get Julia's voice right - you can almost hear her talking - and there are fun cooking tips along the way (like how to make the perfect mayonnaise).

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Julia Child in the tiny kitchen in her tiny Paris apartment, circa 1949

An Argumentation of Historians by Jodi Taylor

April 2, 2023

An Argumentation of Historians by Jodi Taylor

The historians of St. Mary's (aka disaster magnets) are back. Hawking Hanger has been repaired after villain Clive Ronan nearly destroyed it (see And the Rest is History), young Matthew Farrell is safely in the future with the Time Police, and Max's husband Leon is slowly recovering from injuries sustained at the destruction of Constantinople. With their pods repaired and ready for service, Max and her fellow historians are off to observe Henry VIII's disastrous joust in January 1536, then on to Persepolis while setting a trap for Ronan. But things go disastrously wrong (no surprise there) and Max finds herself separated from her people by several centuries.

Very entertaining series, just what I needed after finishing a really depressing lit fic title. This is book #9, and one of the differences from previous books is that while the historians are usually in and out quickly, Max has an adventure that lasts much longer. They still haven't captured Ronan and we still don't know if Markham and Hunter are married and/or if they are pregnant. I guess I'll have to get the next book.

Life in a medieval town

The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott

August 23, 2019

The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott

The words secretary and secret have the same Latin root.  The women who work as secretaries for the CIA are expected to prepare necessary documents and immediately forget what they have typed.

At the height of the Cold War, Irina is hired by the CIA as a secretary.  But it isn't her secretarial skills that the agency is interested in - they are far more interested in her Russian background and ability to blend in without attracting attention.  Sally Forrester, a long-time operative, trains Irina on how to dress, how to act, how to perform a switch without anyone noticing.  At first, Irina works as a courier, picking up and dropping off information and documents.  One of her most important assignments is to meet a British agent and pick up two rolls of microfilm that contain the Russian text for the novel Dr. Zhivago, which has been smuggled out of Soviet Russia.

At his dacha outside Moscow, Boris Pasternak has completed one of the greatest novels ever written, yet he is unable to obtain permission to have the text published in the Soviet Union.  The Communist government feels that since the story is set against the backdrop of the 1918 Russian Revolution, it is critical of the Soviet government.  Pasternak makes the momentous decision to smuggle the text out of Russia to Western Europe, where it will be translated and published to world-wide acclaim.  But Pasternak's decision has dire consequences for himself and his lover Olga (the inspiration for Lara).

Dr. Zhivago has always been one of my favorite novels, so I was fascinated by the background on how it came to be published.  I knew that Pasternak had been awarded the Nobel Prize for the novel, but I had no idea about the controversy that ensued.  Well-researched and vibrantly told, The Secrets We Kept will appeal to readers of historical fiction as well as anyone interested in Soviet Russia during the Cold War, Boris Pasternak, or a legendary literary love story.

Boris Pasternak - very brooding Russian look

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC in return for a review.

The Chelsea Girls by Fiona Davis

July 6, 2019

The Chelsea Girls by Fiona Davis

The Chelsea Hotel in New York was always a home for artists and eccentrics.  Meeting on a USO tour during World War II, Hazel and Maxine form a friendship that lasts after they return home.  Maxine goes to Hollywood to try to break into the movies, while Hazel moves into the Chelsea Hotel and works on an idea for a play.  Another Chelsea resident reads the play and hooks Hazel up with some of her theater connections.  Maxine’s movie career has stalled, so she returns to New York and takes a room at the Chelsea. When she hears that Hazel’s play will be performed on Broadway, she is determined to star as the leading lady.  Maxine secures the role, but it results in disaster as both women and many of their friends are swept up in McCarthyism, HUAC, and the communist witch hunts of the 1950s.  I can’t think of another novel that addresses the activities of HUAC and the consequences for artists, actors, and others in the creative fields this well.  The Chelsea Girls would make a great book club book, since there is much to discuss here.

(If you don’t know what HUAC was, it was the House Un-American Activities Committee, originally formed to investigate the possibility of spies sending information to Russia, but quickly descended into a witch hunt focusing on the entertainment industry.  Sort of like a precursor to Homeland Security.)

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC in return for a review.