Calico Palace

 

                                                                         Calico Palace

Author: Gwen Bristow

Publisher: Thomas Y Crowell & Company

Publish Date: 1970

    As a lover of historical novels, I discovered Gwen Bristow at a young age. I have read several of her novels over the years, and this is one of my favorites.

    The year is 1848.  Kendra, age 17,  travels by ship to San Francisco to live with her mother and stepfather.. San Francisco is a small town, but rumors of gold are increasing in frequency, bringing newcomers every day. While living with her mother, Kendra meets Marny, a card dealer just arrived from a gambling house in Honolulu to start a gambling house of her own.

    Kendra also meets and falls in love with Ted Parks, an adventurer just arriving from New York. Together, Ted, Kendra, Marny, and a host of other lovable characters take off for the hills to find gold. The adventures they encounter, and the gold they find, will change the course of their lives and the course of a California town.

    The main reason I love this book is that it is full of action and adventure. Romance, heartbreak, riches and poverty all come together in this page-turner from the past. Don't let the old copyright put you off. This is a great novel.  

    

The Divorcees

The Divorcees

Author: Rowan Beaird

Publisher: Flatiron Books

Publish Date: June 6, 2023

I received an electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Lois grew up in a loveless home in Chicago. Her father, the wealthy owner of a meat packing industry, had no affection for her whatsoever and was grateful to marry her off to a lawyer. Her mother, having died earlier, was also unloving. Lois felt the marriage might supply her with the love she had always wanted. However, she soon found herself in a loveless marriage as well. In 1951, leaving a marriage on grounds of unhappiness was unheard of. The only way to get a divorce was to go to Reno, Nevada.

Her father, furious at Lois for choosing to divorce her husband, sends her to a Divorce Ranch in Reno for the six weeks needed for the divorce. Run by a woman named Rita, the Golden Yarrow provides a place for women awaiting their divorce in Reno. At the time, divorce was shameful and the women on the Ranch were often in a precarious state. It was thought unacceptable for a woman to live alone. She must stay in a rooming house or live with a roommate. The goal of most of the women, therefore, was to remarry as soon as possible.

Lois doesn't go out at night to the Casinos and Clubs with the others and keeps mainly to herself. She plans to move into a place of her own and has no plans to remarry. This choice, alone, sets her apart from them. She lounges by the pool during the day, which is where she meets a new, mysterious guest at the ranch.

Greer has come to the ranch awaiting her divorce. She has a giant bruise on her face, which the others whisper about. Choosing not to take meals with the others, and not allowing maid service, Greer remains in the shadows of the Golden Yarrow.

One day, while lounging at the pool. Lois meets Greer. The two form a friendship and soon, they are going out with the others to the Casinos. Greer is independent and encourages Lois to follow her dreams. Unlike the others, Greer thinks every woman should follow her own desires and not become merely a man's accessory. 

As Greer begins to have more influence over the others, she and Rita become at odds. Rita sees Greer as a troublemaker. The others see her as a sort of leader, giving them new ideas about life.

But is Greer who she seems to be? What dark past sent her to the Golden Yarrow? When tragedy happens and the others find out the truth, will it be too late?

This story keeps you guessing. I rooted for Lois to the very end. I can not imagine the courage it took her to leave her marriage and search for her own happiness in a world that saw her as nothing but a housewife. A must-read for modern women, this novel is a stark reminder of how far women have come. 

 

Long Gone, Come Home

 

Long Gone, Come Home

Author: Monica Chenault Kilgore

Publisher: Harlequin Trade Publishing

Publish date: June 6, 2023

I received an electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This amazing historical novel begins during the Great Depression when Birdie Jenkins is a young girl working in a tobacco factory. She doesn't dream of a life outside her home of Mt. Sterling Kentucky. Then, she meets Jimmy Walker. Handsome and worldly, Birdie is swept off her feet and marries Jimmy, despite her mother's reservations.

Jimmy is loving and kind, but he suddenly disappears, leaving Birdie to struggle to raise their children on her own. With no explanation for his disappearance, Birdie is forced to move back home to her mother.

One day, Birdie witnesses a brutal murder and is forced to leave town, leaving her children behind. She sets out to find her long-lost Jimmy. Her search takes her to big cities like Chicago where she rubs elbows with both saints and sinners. 

This is a colorful, thought-provoking story of family, love, and one woman's determination to bring her true love home again.

The Cherokee Rose

 

The Cherokee Rose

Author: Tiya Miles

Publisher: Random House

Release Date: June 13, 2023

*I received a copy of the book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

    Not since Lalita Tademy's Cane River have I read a historical novel that is so thoroughly researched and so beautifully written. Cherokee Rose is based on the author's (tremendous) research of the Vann House in Northwest Georgia.

 

    In the story, a former Cherokee plantation turned museum known as Hold House is being sold due to a lack of funds. The sale of the former home of a Cherokee Chieftain (with white and Cherokee blood) brings forth the interest of many locals who share a past with the old mansion. Three women come to the old mansion for different reasons. Cheyenne, who claims to have a Native American ancestor that once lived at the house, plans to buy Hold House and convert it into a bed and breakfast. Jinx is a young Muscogee historian sent by her tribe to find out what happened to a tribal member that had lived on the plantation but did not take the Trail of Tears north. Ruth, a writer for a home magazine up north is here on assignment. She and Cheyenne share a past. Add the ghost of a young Muscogee woman and a mysterious diary, and you get a story you can't put down. 

      This story covers a little-known but very important part of Native American and Southern history. Before the white man came here and removed the Cherokee on the Trail of Tears, Northwest Georgia was owned and farmed by the Cherokee. What many people don't know is that there were Cherokee who owned slaves. Although I grew up here on what was Cherokee land, and I have heard stories of the old plantations that were here, I was never taught much about my own local history while in school. This is why I am so glad to see this book! When history covers the South, it mostly concentrates on the white-owned plantations of southern Georgia. Students are not taught the history of the northern part of the state, which is very different. The story delves into the history of the plantation, the three races that came together there, and how their fates were intertwined. 

     

    I highly recommend this book to any lover of historical fiction or history buff. Miles' writing style makes the read enjoyable. Her characters are very well-rounded and believable. This one is a keeper.

Sinners or Starlight City

 Sinners of Starlight City

Author: Anika Scott

Publisher: William Morrow

Release Date: July 18, 2023

*I received a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Set against the backdrop of the Chicago Worlds Fair, this action-packed book is hard to put down. Rosa Mancuso left Chicago for Sicily with her Italian mother after the death of her black father. She was raised in Sicily until her family was violently killed. Narrowly escaping, Rosa eventually returns to Chicago seeking revenge.

Known as Madam Mystique, Rosa is an exotic dancer. Her show at the fair is one of the most popular, and Rosa becomes a celebrity in her own right. However, her main reason for being in Chicago is still revenge.

When Rosa's cousin Mina comes to her begging for help, Rosa Can not turn her away. Mina has given birth to a biracial baby and her Chicago Mob family has decided the baby should be sent to an orphanage. Mina's father paid a mobster, named Danny, to hold Mina hostage until the baby was born. Can Rosa help Mina get her baby before Danny takes it to an orphanage?

Danny is, to me, one of the most interesting characters in the book. He grew up rough, and became a mobster, but has a very kind heart. He knows it is wrong to take Mina's baby. Can he help right this wrong without getting himself killed by the mob? 

This book is full of interesting, well-developed characters. Scott's description of the fair makes me wish I could have been there. The sights, the sounds, and the scenery are brought to life as Mina tries to protect and keep her baby and Rosa seeks revenge against the one who killed her family. The story drives on toward an unexpected ending. (No spoilers here!).

This is a story you won't be able to put down. 

Read this book if you...

...enjoy historical fiction

...enjoy suspense

...enjoy stories about the mob

Flight of the Sparrow

Title: Flight of the Sparrow Author: Amy Belding Brown Publisher: Penguin Pages:331

From Amazon:

She suspects that she has changed too much to ever fit easily into English society again. The wilderness has now become her home. She can interpret the cries of birds. She has seen vistas that have stolen away her breath. She has learned to live in a new, free way.... 

Massachusetts Bay Colony, 1676. Even before Mary Rowlandson was captured by Indians on a winter day of violence and terror, she sometimes found herself in conflict with her rigid Puritan community. Now, her home destroyed, her children lost to her, she has been sold into the service of a powerful woman tribal leader, made a pawn in the ongoing bloody struggle between English settlers and native people. Battling cold, hunger, and exhaustion, Mary witnesses harrowing brutality but also unexpected kindness. To her confused surprise, she is drawn to her captors’ open and straightforward way of life, a feeling further complicated by her attraction to a generous, protective English-speaking native known as James Printer. All her life, Mary has been taught to fear God, submit to her husband, and abhor Indians. Now, having lived on the other side of the forest, she begins to question the edicts that have guided her, torn between the life she knew and the wisdom the natives have shown her.

Based on the compelling true narrative of Mary Rowlandson, Flight of the Sparrow is an evocative tale that transports the reader to a little-known time in early America and explores the real meanings of freedom, faith, and acceptance.

I will be honest. I just couldn't deal with the gore and violence of this book. I am sure it is historically correct, and therefore, I place the blame with me, the reader- not the author. The author has produced a well-written account. I just can't take the violence and gore. However, enthusiasts of this time period would probably love this book. It's just a little too violent and graphic for me.

Read this book if...

*you love historical novels

*you love novels of early America

*graphic violence and gore don't bother you

Belle Cora by: Phillip Margullies

Title: Belle Cora Author: Phillip Marguilles Publisher: Doubleday, 2014 Pages: 594

The first time I began reading this book, it was a sample excerpt from Kindle which in no way did the book justice. It began in the first chapter. To really "get" this book, one must read the Foreward and Author's Introduction, which set the stage and give the background information necessary for understanding the story. I am so glad I picked up a print version and tried again. I truly loved this book. After surviving the San Francisco earthquake, a wealthy elderly woman reveals her life story as a former madam. The story begins with her childhood in New York City, where she was part of a large, well-to-do family. I won't provide spoilers, but the story follows her throughout her life and loves, triumphs and  tragedies until she decides to give up being a madam and assume a respectable identity where no one knows her past. As a lover of historical fiction, I found this book fascinating.

Read this book if...
*you enjoy historical fiction
*you enjoy sagas

The Spirit Keeper

Title: The Spirit Keeper Author: K.B. Laugheed Publisher: Plume Pages:341

From Amazon:

This is the account of Katie O’Toole, late of Lancaster Co., Pennsylvania, removed from her family by savages on March the 2nd in the year of our Lord 1747

The thirteenth child conceived of miserable Irish exiles, Katie O’Toole dreams of a different life. Little does she know that someone far away is dreaming of her.
In 1747, savages raid her family home, and seventeen-year-old Katie is taken captive. Syawa and Hector have been searching for her, guided by Syawa’s dreams. A young Holyman, Syawa believes Katie is the subject of his Vision: the Creature of Fire and Ice, destined to bring a great gift to his people. Despite her flaming hair and ice-blue eyes, Katie is certain he is mistaken, but faced with returning to her family, she agrees to join them. She soon discovers that in order to fulfill Syawa’s Vision, she must first become his Spirit Keeper, embarking on an epic journey that will change her life—and heart—forever.

I loved this book. I fell into the story immediately. Young Katie O'Toole is caring for children in the attic room of her crowded pioneer home when she hears the blood chilling battle cry. Her family is being attacked by Indians.. She can do nothing but wait upstairs as she hears the chaos outside. Slowly she hears the warriors making their way toward the stairs...

Katie, her mom and sister are taken captive along with a few children. But why do two of the Indians (who look so differently from the others) stay so close to her and treat her preferentially? She soon learns that one of these braves is a visionary who saw her in a vision as a creature of fire and ice (red hair and blue eyes) and treks across the country to take her to his home. Katie must make a decision. Should she continue with the braves or return to a french fort with her mother and sister? Having suffered brutality every day of her life at the hands of her family, Katie takes her chances with the warriors. The story of their journey will leave you unable to put this book down. I learned so much about early pioneer life as well as early Native Americans. The juxtaposition of the two cultures as they make their way across a young America is fascinating. I wasn't ready for this book to end! 

Read this book if...

*you love historical fiction

*you love adventure novels

*you love stories about Native Americans and pioneers

The Diviners

Title: The Diviners Author: LIbba Bray Publisher: Little, Brown & Co. Pages:578

I borrowed this book from my local library.

From Amazon:

Evie O'Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City--and she is pos-i-toot-ly thrilled. New York is the city of speakeasies, shopping, and movie palaces! Soon enough, Evie is running with glamorous Ziegfield girls and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is Evie has to live with her Uncle Will, curator of The Museum of American Folklore, Superstition, and the Occult--also known as "The Museum of the Creepy Crawlies."

When a rash of occult-based murders comes to light, Evie and her uncle are right in the thick of the investigation. And through it all, Evie has a secret: a mysterious power that could help catch the killer--if he doesn't catch her first.

This review may contain a few spoilers. I usually don't include spoilers, but I found it impossible not to do so in this case.

I admit this book is different from my usual reads, but the trailer sounded intriguing. I actually found it hard to put down. It does contain a few things I normally avoid- brutal murder, animal sacrifice- but, aside from those unpleasantries, it was a pretty good book. I got a little bogged down in some spots- had to skip a few paragraphs and get on with it. The slang can get annoying- the words pos-i-tute-ly and jake get used on every single (I kid you not) page. Set against the backdrop of 1920's NYC- speakeasies, flapper girls- the story follows several characters with unusual psychic gifts. Evie can hold any object and know the innermost secrets of the owner. Memphis has the power to heal, and his brother Isaiah has the gift of prophecy. Sam has the ability to be invisible, and is searching for his mother who was taken by the government as part of Project Buffalo- a mysterious, top-secret government paranormal project. Theta's gift I never completely understood except that she killed her ex-husband with it. Why are these characters being brought together and why are they dreaming the same dreams? Who is the mysterious man with the tall hat? And what exactly is Project Buffalo? I hope these questions will be answered in the next book....

And then, of course, there is the murder mystery itself. An evil spirit is released from a Ouija board and begins wreaking havoc on the city. Who is the spirit and what are the strange symbols left behind on his victims? Why are some of their body parts missing? Can Evie, Sam, her Uncle Will, and his assistant, Jericho, stop the killer before it is too late?

I had to struggle between 3 and 4 stars on this one. On the one hand, I  couldn't put it down. On the other, the slang and the bogged-down-in-detail parts got annoying. Evie, the main character, is a selfish spoiled brat who isn't all that likable. Will I read the next one? Sure- I will give it a try. Will I finish it? I'm not sure...

Read this book if:

*you love murder mysteries

*you love reading about the supernatural

*you love stories set in the Roaring 20's.

*you want to get wrapped up in a new series

Monday Memories

This is a meme hosted by Annette's Book Spot. Monday Memories is a place to post favorite books from the past. You can either link to an old review, or write something new about a favorite book from the past. What's important is what makes the book so memorable to you..

I am choosing Oral History by Lee Smith as my Monday Memory.

This is my favorite book EVER. The copy I own is my third copy because I kept lending it to people who loved it so much they refused to return it. (I finally learned my lesson.)  I don't loan my Lee Smith books.

The story begins when a college student returns to her family home in 1970's Appalachia. She intends to do an oral history project on how the family home place, an old cabin sitting high on a mountain, became so haunted that no one can live there. The story then reaches back to the early 1800's when Almarine Cantrell takes a wife, a witch known as Red Emmy, and lives with her in the cabin.  The story grabs you from page one.  EVERYONE I have ever recommended this book to has said they could NOT put it down.  It's just that kind of a book. Part ghost story, part historical fiction, part family saga...and ALL southern Appalachian fiction (my fave).

This is the book that placed Lee Smith as my all-time favorite author. I own many of her books, and she has her own special "Lee Smith" shelf in my living room.  I would love to meet her in person. She is an amazing writer.

Try this book. I PROMISE you won't be able to put it down, either. If you do try it, be sure and comment and let me know how you liked it.

Beth :)

Turtle in Paradise

Title: Turtle in Paradise Author: Jennifer L. Holm Publisher: Random House Pages: 177

I borrowed this book from my school library.

Summary (from the verso):
In 1935, when her mother gets a job housekeeping for a woman who does not like children, eleven-year-old turtle is sent to stay with relatives she has never met in far away Key West, Florida.

I must say from the beginning that I really enjoyed this book and have found myself repeatedly recommending it to my students. Turtle is a delightful girl with a realistic (and refreshing) outlook on life.  Sure, she has had her share of hard knocks, but she is clever and witty enough to survive and make the best of things.  She repeatedly outsmarts older kids and adults alike. The Depression- Era Key West setting makes a great background for this hilarious and heartwarming story. The ending was not what I expected, but it was exactly what Turtle needed. A great read.

Rad this story if:
*you love children's fiction
*you love historical fiction
*you love stories that take place in an island setting
*you love stories with a strong female protagonist