Velvet was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

September 21, 2021

Velvet was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Maite is a secretary bored with her job. She is addicted to romance comics and largely ignores the political climate outside her window. When her glamorous neighbor Leonora disappears, Maite searches for her and finds herself being drawn into Leonora's world of student protests and dissidents. At the same time, a mob enforcer named Elvis is also looking for Leonora, but for different reasons.

As much as I like the author's two previous novels, this one was disappointing. It was very slow moving and the characters were uninteresting. It did have a great cover - very noir-ish.

The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris

September 7, 2022

The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris

George and Isabelle Walker and their son Caleb live a quiet secluded life on the outskirts of Old Ox, Georgia. George has always been an eccentric man: he inherited a large tract of land from his father and he preferred to sell off the land piece by piece rather than work. He spends his time reading and taking long hikes in the forest that he owns. Isabelle loves her husband but has never understood him. Caleb enlisted in the Confederate Army, just like all the other young men in Old Ox. Near the end of the war, Caleb's best friend August brings them word that Caleb has been killed in the war. Following General Lee's surrenders, Old Ox is living under military rule. A short time later, Caleb comes home but by that time, August's father has spread word throughout the town that Caleb is a coward and a deserter. His face is damaged but he is otherwise unharmed. But Caleb and August have a secret - they have been lovers since before the war.

George suddenly decides that rather than sell off more of his land, he will begin to farm peanuts. He hires two former slaves, Prentiss and Landry. His neighbors reset that the two ex-slaves are working for George for wages while so many returning soldiers are unemployed (not that many of them would have worked as farmhands), feeling that it goes against the centuries-old social order. Even though it doesn't affect anyone except the Walkers, all the whites in the community have an opinion. But when Landry stumbles on Caleb and August having a tryst in the forest, disaster follows.

An exceptional book, one of the best books that I've read this year. This title was chosen for Oprah's Book Club, President Obama's reading list and was long-listed for the Man Booker Prize. How does a community make peace in the wake of civil war and emancipation? Why do so many people feel it's their place to judge others and decide what's right for them? Until God gives me the administrator's passcode, I'll leave that up to Him/Her/Them.

A Tapestry of Treason by Anne O'Brien

September 19, 2021

A Tapestry of Treason by Anne O'Brien

Constance of York, Lady Despencer (sometimes spelled Dispencer) is part of a magnificently dysfunction family, the Plantagenets, aka the House of York. She is a willing tool of her husband and her two brothers in their quest for power. When King Richard II (Constance's cousin) is overthrown in 1399, Henry Bolingbroke, son of John of Gaunt and another one of Constance's cousins, seizes the throne to become King Henry IV. No sooner is Henry on the throne than Constance and her male relatives begin plotting to restore Richard to the throne. Their plot fails but Constance is able to talk her way back into Henry's good graces. So what does she do? She immediately becomes involved in ANOTHER traitorous plot to overthrow Henry. This one fails as well, but there are more serious consequences for the plotters.

Constance is a little-known historical figure, remembered only for being at the center of two treasonous plots, and the author has spun an interesting historical novel around her. Lady Constance is maddening at times, allowing her family's ambition to override her good sense. There are lots of secret meetings, plots, and many unlikeable characters. Constance's character is deeply flawed and at times she is TSTL (romance novel term for "too stupid to live"). Still, this was a very good read and I recommend it for fans of historical fiction set in the medieval period.

Constance of York, Lady Despencer

A Regimental Murder by Ashley Gardner

September 17, 2021

A Regimental Murder by Ashley Gardner

In Regency London, Captain Gabriel Lacey saves a beautiful woman from an assault and ends up searching for her late husband's murderer. Her husband was a soldier accused of atrocities following a battle. With the help of his wealthy society friend Lucius Grenville, Lacey promises to find the killer. In the course of his investigation, an underworld figure who seems to be involved tries to lure Lacey to work for him.

This series is a poor knock-off of the Sebastian St. Cyr novels. It is set in the same time period, same location, same level of society. There is even the actress who is a peripheral character. The main character has WAY too many flaws including a bad temper, a hair trigger, and a tendency to make hasty decisions and snap judgments. There are also glaring historical inaccuracies. This is the second book in the series and I won't be reading any more.

Spellmaker by Charlie N. Holmberg

September 9, 2021

Spellmaker by Charlie N. Holmberg

England 1895 - Elsie Camden is an unlicensed spellbreaker, a crime punishable by imprisonment. When she refuses to work with a dark magician who is responsible for the deaths of a series of wizards and the theft of their spell books, her secret is exposed and she lands in jail. But elite magician Bacchus Kelsey comes up with a plan to legitimize Elsie's work, but they must marry to make the story believable. Elsie then has to pretend to a dim-witted magic tutor that she has only basic spellbreaking skills, rather than the high level she really possesses. Meanwhile, she and Bacchus work on a plan to identify and thwart the dark villain.

Holmberg wrote a wonderful historical fantasy set in Victorian times. She overlays the real world with magic, and it's an acceptable part of the times. Even the romance aspect didn't annoy me (so often, an author will throw in a romance that doesn't serve any purpose). I loved this duology and I hope there will be another book in the series. The cover art reminds me of Gail Carriger's Soulless series.

The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

September 7, 2021

The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

Belle da Costa Greene was the librarian of J. P. Morgan's personal library. But Belle was hiding a secret that could have spelled disaster for her if it was revealed: she was born Belle Greener, daughter of the first black man to graduate from Harvard. She passes as white, claiming to be of Portuguese descent to account for her darker complexion. 

As a librarian, I expected to enjoy this historical novel more than I did. I was looking for more details about the materials that Belle sourced and curated. But most of the emphasis is on the artwork that she acquired: she was more of an art dealer than a librarian. There was also a lot more about society and Belle's difficulties in passing for white. I skimmed the last half of the book. I usually like Marie Benedict's books since they focus on largely unknown women, but I felt the writing here was mediocre. Belle's story deserved better.

Belle da Costa Greene

The Winners by Fredrik Backman

September 5, 2022

The Winners by Fredrik Backman

The wheel of fortune has turned again, putting Beartown on top and rival town Hed on the bottom. A devastating storm leaves the two towns more dependent on each other than ever before. The death of a long-time Beartown resident brings characters back to Beartown, but more than one beloved resident will die.

Benji comes back from his wanderings, still lost. Maya travels home from music college, still dealing with the rape of two years earlier. Star player Amat returns home after a disastrous trip to the NHL draft and falls into the bottom of a bottle. Matteo, a lonely neglected teen who isn't involved in hockey, wanders the towns, primed to do something terrible. Mumble, Beartown's star goalie, is carrying a heavy load of guilt. Tess, the daughter of a Hed firefighter, falls in love with Bobo, Beartown's assistant coach. Head coach Elisabeth Zackell recruits a new player and has plans to resurrect Amat and also his career. Maya's parents may or may not be getting a divorce.

Add in the men in back from Beartown, the trash bandits from Hed, and a group of crooked politicians and businessmen. Mix in a scandal that is brewing over the Beartown club finances that the editor of the local newspaper is trying to expose. Combine all ingredients and stir briskly but carefully - it's going to be messy.

Fredrik Backman has written a wonderful conclusion to his Beartown trilogy. I cried more that once. You forget that many of the characters are so very young, but have suffered so much already. Backman understands about regrets, the need for redemption, and the hopes, dreams and fears that we all share as humans. Wonderful writing.

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