Funny How Things Turn Out: Love, Death and Unsuitable Husbands - a Mother and Daughter Story
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Muriel Newmarch was born in North London in 1903. She died in 2009, aged 106. Judith Bruce is her...
The Ninth Child
10.0
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A spellbinding novel combining Scottish folklore with hidden history, by the Sunday Times...
Victorian Scotland Scottish Folklore Social reforms
The Sealwoman's Gift
8.0
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***SHORTLISTED FOR THE HWA DEBUT CROWN, THE WAVERTON GOOD READ AWARD & LONGLISTED FOR THE BEST FIRST...
Historical Fiction
Elsey Come Home
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From the widely praised author of Paris Was the Place—a shattering new novel that bravely delves...
ClareR (5854 KP) rated A Woman Made of Snow in Books
Nov 9, 2021
Caro and Alasdair marry after the War and move back to his family home - Kelly Castle in Scotland. Caro has high hopes of continuing to work in a university, but motherhood puts pay to that, and instead decides to look into the Gillan family genealogy, and specifically the mysterious disappearance of Alasdair’s great grandmother. When Caro finds the remains of a diary, there are some startling findings.
We flash back and forth between 1949 and the 1800s, where the information missing from the diary is more clearly explained. When a body is unearthed after flooding, this poses more questions about he person’s identity. Is this the missing relative?
I absolutely loved this. The descriptions of the sea, the Arctic tundra and the Inuit who lived there, fascinated me. Less pleasant were the attitudes of the British towards other cultures, but this was interesting, all the same. The changing roles of women was portrayed well. Whilst not the same as our lives today, Caro’s life in the 1940’s/ 50’s was markedly better than that of the women in the 1800s.
This was such an enjoyable read - highly recommended.
Thanks to The Pigeonhole for serialising this wonderful book.
Silent as the Grave
5.0
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Retired Detective Molly Murphy Sullivan goes undercover in the next book in the New York Times...
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Girls' Weekend in Books
Feb 13, 2018
When reading it, the premise seems a little farfetched, but the characters in this novel immediately seem very real and the book gives a lot of little details about motherhood that lend it realism (for instance, humming annoying intro music to a children's show at inappropriate times). Each woman is different, but you can relate to a piece of each of them. I found myself liking parts of each and being frustrated with other parts - just like your actual friends.
It's probably true that parts of the book are stereotypical toward men (and fathers) -- painting them as bumbling and clueless toward their wives and children, but sadly, there is some realism to it, too. Plus, as the storyline progresses, you fixate less on this fact and realize there's more to this story than black and white. Honestly, it speaks universally to many women, especially mothers: those seeking answers in life, those feeling guilty for not being happy when life seems perfect on paper, those wondering when life simply became a series of errands. I felt like Achterberg did an excellent job of dealing with and capturing some of the quintessential problems facing the modern mom.
The book is painful to read at times, but only because it's so well-written. Your heart breaks for Meg and all she has been through. The book lags a little in the middle, but really, the women do too, as they try to figure out exactly what they should do. It is fascinating because they are doing what you can't quite imagine pulling off. My mind was racing as I read: I mean, who would really watch your kids for that long? What spouse would be OK with this? Who could leave their kids for that long? And yet, you sort of dream for the time away, envy the women as you read the novel. It's easy to empathize with them, even as you may question some of their motives.
Overall, the book was easy to read and Charlotte, Meg, and Dani were interesting and relatable characters. The book made me think (and highlight many passages). It's a fun read, but also goes deeper, too. Really enjoyed it.
I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley (thank you!); it is available everywhere on 5/3.
Zuky the BookBum (15 KP) rated The Fall of Lisa Bellow in Books
Mar 15, 2018
The novel was very well put together. The writing was wonderful and the characters were incredibly well developed, but my problem was the plot. As a lot of others have said, this promised suspense and a bit of action, but it was instead a slow moving, poetic family drama.
The characters, I didnt care enough about to really get invested in their stories. Meredith was fine, and like I previously said, often funny, but I had no empathy for her, so her story meant very little to me. Claire I didnt like, not even a little bit. Ive never experienced motherhood, but there was something so immature about her when it came to certain situations with her kids, that I ended up hating her for her behaviour and thoughts.
I hate that I didnt like this novel, but there we are.
<i>Thanks to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for giving me the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.</i>
Sour: My Story: A Troubled Girl from a Broken Home. the Brixton Gang She Nearly Died for. the Baby She Fought to Live for.
Tracey Miller and Lucy Bannerman
Book
They call me Sour. The opposite of sweet. Shanking, stabbing, steaming, robbing, I did it all,...
Don't Give Your Heart to a Rambler: My Life with Jimmy Martin, the King of Bluegrass
Book
As charismatic and gifted as he was volatile, Jimmy Martin recorded dozens of bluegrass classics and...